LET IT BREATHE // A FILM REVIEW OF "THE ONLY ONE"
There's a million different types of "the one who got away" stories out there but none have quite been as effortlessly breezy or as beautiful to gaze upon as THE ONLY ONE, a new film by Seth and Noah Gilbert. Tom, played by Caitlin Stasey, is a young adventurer of life. She's journeyed up and down the world, traveling and searching for something, never knowing what it is. As she turns 30, she finds herself going back to a place that she abandoned a long time ago, back to a man that she ran away from. David (Jon Beavers) lives and runs a vineyard in the south of France, one that was passed down to him and he now spends his days in a sunny bliss, making wine without the aid of any modern technology (he doesn't even own a cell phone). David is perplexed to see Tom again, unsure of what to make of it. But much like their original relationship, he simply lets go to see where it might head. Tom left to go get cigarettes one morning and never came back. So why come back now? And does she even intend to stay this time?
The answers that come, and don't come, in THE ONLY ONE are detached from the usual cliches that often hold up this type of film. Much like real life, there are no easy answers here, but there is a lot of wine drinking, picturesque views of vineyards and living in the moment, something that Tom has all but perfected. Director Noah Gilbert has crafted a beautiful film here, one that's unpretentious and full of charm and romance. Where it sometimes feels light on surprises and weight, it makes up for in a delicate balance of yearning and the need for change surrounding everyone. Caitlin Stasey and Jon Beavers have a natural and shimmering chemistry and they telegraph the restlessness of both Tom and David very well. The easiest thing would be to find simple solutions to their problems, but this film chooses instead to wander through the fields of emotional baggage and slowly pick up what's laying all around them. The ending doesn't quite have the emotional heft you want it to have and you may see where it's going before it gets there, but that won't take away the spender and beauty of the trip getting there.
GRADE: B+
WRITTEN BY Seth Gilbert DIRECTED BY Noah Gilbert STARRING Caitlin Stasey, Jon Beavers, Blake Lindsley, Hugo Armstrong. NOW PLAYING IN SELECT THEATRES AND ON DEMAND