Blue Jean (film) explained

Director:Georgia Oakley
Music:Chris Roe, Stavros Papanikolaou
Cinematography:Victor Seguin
Editing:Izabella Curry
Producer:Hélène Sifre
Distributor:Altitude Films
Country:United Kingdom
Runtime:97 minutes[1]
Language:English
Gross:$693,331[2] [3]

Blue Jean is a 2022 British drama film written and directed by Georgia Oakley, in her directorial debut. It stars Rosy McEwen, Kerrie Hayes and Lucy Halliday.

The film premiered on 3 September 2022 at the 79th Venice Film Festival and was released in cinemas on 10 February 2023.

Plot

In Newcastle in 1988, Jean is a PE teacher at a secondary school. On her way to work, she hears a news broadcast about the proposed Section 28 legislation, but switches it off. At school, she is reserved and closeted, and lies to her coworkers to avoid socialising with them after work. She regularly visits a gay bar with her friends and girlfriend Viv.

While Viv is at Jean's flat, Jean tries to watch Blind Date, while Viv refuses, declaring it to be anti-gay propaganda. Jean's sister arrives unannounced and asks her to look after her son, Sam. Jean hides Viv's presence from her sister and downplays their relationship to Sam, which angers Viv.

A new student, Lois, arrives at school. Later, Jean and Lois recognise each other in the gay bar, but do not exchange words or acknowledge the meeting later. Lois gains a sudden interest in netball and joins Jean's netball team, where she clashes with another student, Siobhan. Lois also spends more time at the bar, and befriends Jean's friendship group. Jean confronts her and tells her to stay away, warning her that she could lose her job at the school if she is outed. Viv sees Jean and Lois exiting the toilets, and leaves in anger, firstly believing that Jean is cheating on her. Jean confesses to Viv about how she knows Lois, and Viv responds by telling Jean that she is setting a poor example for her students.

Jean visits her sister for Sunday lunch, where she sees a photograph of her from her wedding day. She asks her sister to take the photograph down, and her sister reveals that she knows that Jean is a lesbian.

Jean's boss Paula finds a copy of a lesbian magazine on Jean's desk, left there by somebody else, and Jean assumes that Lois is responsible. Siobhan provokes Lois after a game of netball, and the two students fight. After Jean breaks the fight up, Siobhan kisses Lois in the shower, which Jean sees, but Siobhan claims that Lois assaulted her. Despite knowing this to be a lie, Jean goes along with it, and Lois is suspended.

Jean tries to apologise to Viv, but Viv says they cannot get back together. She also tries to make amends to Lois, but she is uninterested in talking to Jean. At a children's birthday party, Jean comes out to her brother-in-law and a friend, before bursting out in laughter as she leaves.

She convinces Lois to come with her to a house party, where Jean's friends share in the "bog fund", a co-operative fund for lesbians in the city. A friend of Jean's tells Lois that the lesbians with "real jobs" like Jean contribute to the fund. Later that night, Viv and Jean talk in friendly terms, but don't reconcile.

The next day, Jean arrives at school with a smile on her face.

Cast

Release

Blue Jean premiered on 3 September 2022 in the Venice Days section of the 79th edition of the Venice Film Festival.[4] It was released in cinemas in the United Kingdom on 10 February 2023 by Altitude Films.[5]

Critical reception

The film received positive reviews from film critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 96% of 113 critics have given the film a positive review, with an average rating of 7.9/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Bridging times past with issues that are still current, Blue Jean resonates intellectually and emotionally thanks to thoughtful direction and authentic performances".[6] Metacritic gives the film a weighted average rating of 87 out of 100, based on 18 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[7]

Accolades

AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipient(s)Result
Venice Film Festival11 September 2022People Choice's AwardBlue Jean
British Academy Film Awards19 February 2023Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or ProducerGeorgia Oakley (director), Helene Sifre (producer)[8]
British Independent Film Awards4 December 2022Best British Independent FilmBlue Jean[9] [10]
Best DirectorGeorgia Oakley
Best Lead PerformanceRosy McEwen
Best Supporting PerformanceKerrie Hayes
Lucy Halliday
Breakthrough PerformanceRosy McEwen
Best ScreenplayGeorgia Oakley
Best CastingShaheen Baig
Best EditingIzabella Curry
Best Debut DirectorGeorgia Oakley
Best Debut ScreenwriterGeorgia Oakley
Breakthrough ProducerHélène Sifre
Best Ensemble PerformanceRosy McEwen, Kerrie Hayes, Lucy Halliday, Lydia Page, Stacy Abalogun, Farrah Cave, Amy Booth-Steel
Gotham Independent Film Awards27 November 2023Breakthrough DirectorGeorgia Oakley[11]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Blue Jean . 2023-02-13 . British Board of Film Classification.
  2. tt8649344. Blue Jean. August 6, 2023.
  3. Blue-Jean-(2022-United-Kingdom). Blue Jean. August 6, 2023.
  4. News: Vlessing . Etan . Magnolia Pictures Nabs Rosy McEwen's 'Blue Jean' Out of Venice . 12 February 2023 . . 11 September 2022.
  5. Web site: 'Blue Jean' Trailer: Georgie Oakley's Astonishing Queer Drama To Hit UK Theaters In February . 2023-02-13 . The Playlist.
  6. Web site: Blue Jean . 10 June 2023 . Rotten Tomatoes.
  7. Web site: Blue Jean Reviews . 10 June 2023 . Metacritic.
  8. News: Ntim . Zac . 8 February 2023 . 'Blue Jean': Read The Screenplay For Georgia Oakley's BAFTA Nominated Debut . . 12 February 2023.
  9. News: Youngs . Ian . 10 February 2023 . Blue Jean: The lesbian teachers who inspired film about Section 28 . . 12 February 2023.
  10. Web site: Szalai . Georg . 2022-11-04 . British Independent Film Awards: Debut Movies 'Aftersun,' 'Blue Jean' Lead Nominations . 2023-10-25 . The Hollywood Reporter . en-US.
  11. Web site: Lewis . Hilary . 2023-10-24 . 'Past Lives,' 'A Thousand and One' and 'All of Us Strangers' Top Gotham Awards Film Nominees . 2023-10-25 . The Hollywood Reporter . en-US.