Jacob Elordi and Daisy Edgar Jones Drama

On fast horses It begins by showing us two images: sex and a deck of cards.

Muriel (Daisy Edgar-Jones) is making love to Lee (Will Poulter), a soldier on leave from Korea. Meanwhile, Lee's brother Julius (Jacob Elordi) has already been discharged from the war and is on his way to meet them both in Kansas, with only his bag and those postcards. It's almost Christmas and Lee wants Muriel to marry him, but she hasn't given her answer yet. Despite this, the atmosphere between them is light and fun. When Julius arrives, for a moment, they are one big happy family in Muriel's cozy, secluded home, which she inherited from her mother. Spacious, lived-in and lovingly decorated for the holidays, it's exactly the kind of house you might imagine raising a family in. But Lee dreams of California and wants Muriel and Julius to be out there with him when the war is over. It's a dream that seems too good to be true, but he doesn't know it yet.

On fast horses It's the kind of big, sweeping romantic drama that Hollywood doesn't make anymore. Director Daniel Minahan, a veteran of the small screen for many years, Six feet under TO Travel companions —fills every widescreen frame with gorgeous landscapes and sumptuous colors, fully transporting us to a time when space was abundant and America seemed full of possibility.

The film, based on Shannon Pufahi's book of the same name, is an emotionally complex love triangle that branches out into something even more complex. Muriel marries Lee while pining for Julius, who seems to have much more complicated feelings for her, mixed with a genuine love for his brother. Over time, both Muriel and Julius find other lovers, while also writing to each other, all without Lee knowing. Julius meets Henry (Diego Calva) while working at a casino in Las Vegas, and the two begin a passionate and caustic romance. Down in the valley, Muriel skips work to party with her neighbor Sandra (Sasha Calle), a woman who lives openly as a lesbian despite the stigma. With Henry, Julius finds a man even wilder than he is, full of endless ambition. But when it comes to Muriel and Sandra, it's harder to tell if the feelings are real.

Both Julius and Muriel enjoy gambling, but while cards are his poison, she prefers to bet on horses. Just like their shared vice, their queer love lives are just as dangerous. Although Muriel returns home to her husband every night, he knows nothing about the life she leads when he's away. By hiding gambling money around the house, Muriel tries to maintain her double life without having to take the real risk of being alone. And while she sees Julius as a coward for not coming home to her and Lee, her life of risk is more honest, and over time, she begins to confront her demons.

Elordi gives his best performance yet as Julius, showing his most sensitive and vulnerable side on the big screen perhaps for the first time. His love scenes with Calva are tender and exciting, the men exploring each other's bodies in a dreamy motel room. Calva proves his memorable performance in the underrated Babylon two years ago it was just a warm-up. It has much more to offer.

Perhaps in his most substantial role since then Normal peopleEdgar-Jones gives an understated performance as Muriel, letting us know her through subtle gestures and expressions. Muriel is a woman hiding from her potential, trying to fit into a neat little box, knowing that once inside she can’t breathe. Poulter’s Lee isn’t cruel enough to make us root against him, but there’s not much he can do other than stand as a symbol of everything Julius and Muriel want to escape. A talented comic actor, Poulter is convincing as the stereotypical 1950s husband, trying to get his piece of the American dream. And then there’s Calle, who plays Sandra as a woman in the middle, not wanting to fly free or hide, but rather have the world accept her for who she is, right out in the open.

On fast horses It's about the shapes love can take, the different lives we live, and the many different ways we can create a home. It's beautiful, heartbreaking, and demands to be seen on the biggest screen possible. Let's hope it brings the romantic epic back into fashion.