CIFF: “Rye Lane” - Film Review
In recent years, it seems that romantic comedies have forgotten what it takes to be successful in the genre. A film must be romantic and comedic, which seems obvious, but there are plenty of recent examples that lack the romance of the ’90s heyday or the screwball comedy of the 1930s. Fortunately, rom com lovers can rejoice in Rye Lane.
Dom (David Jonsson) is not having a good day. He’s crying in a bathroom stall at an art gallery because Gia (Karene Peter), the woman he had been dating for six years, is posting on social media about her new boyfriend, Eric (Benjamin Sarpong-Broni). To further rub salt in the wound, Eric is Dom’s childhood friend and the reason behind the breakup.
Yas’ (Vivian Oparah) day is okay until she hears Dom crying in the bathroom stall. She attempts to comfort him, but the situation is too weird to provide any real consolation. Later, back in the art gallery, Yas runs into Dom again. The two realize they’re heading in the same direction as they leave the gallery and decide to stick together to see where the day takes them. Along the way, they’ll help each other overcome their exes, open up about their fears, and maybe, just maybe, start to believe in love again.
If this sounds like you’ve seen it before, you’re kind of correct. There’s a big romantic gesture, charming jokes, and the usual beats of a rom com. Rye Lane takes the conventions of the genre and, while it doesn’t reinvent them, it certainly reinvigorates the rom com. The banter between Dom and Yas is snappy and bursting with chemistry. The audience will be grinning the whole way through.
Rye Lane is a distant relative of Richard Linklater’s Before Trilogy. Rye Lane includes the same walking-around-a-city-and-talking-about-life outline, but the film takes place in the city that’s home to Dom and Yas. This gives it the freedom to have quirky characters flit in and out of the story. It evens the playing field because they’re both so familiar with the streets they’re walking on. They know the shortcuts and where the best burrito places are. The setting of South London also creates comedic opportunities to include Dom’s ex and Yas’ ex, along with Dom’s two moms, who provide a moped for the day. Rye Lane skews much more comedic than Linklater’s trilogy and is far more colorful. The bright buildings of South London, Dom’s pink shoes, and Yas’ shining yellow jacket are far more vibrant than Linklater’s versions of Vienna, Paris, and the Greek Peloponnese peninsula.
Most of the film takes place over the course of one day. Instead of limiting the setting to the ground Dom and Yas can cover on foot/moped, Rye Lane is infused with magical realism. When Dom recounts the moment at the movie theatre where he learns Gia was cheating on him with Eric, the audience and Yas are transported to a dreamier version of that same theatre. Yas is munching on popcorn as Dom relates his tragedy and so is the audience. The fact that Yas has a box of popcorn when they’re back to reality, as well as the abundant use of the fisheye lens, lets the audience know that not all the rules of the real world exist here. The same is conveyed in the composition of many of the close-up shots of Dom and Yas. Even if they’re physically far apart in the scene, Raine Allen-Miller frames the close-up with Dom and Yas almost at the edge of the frame. It’s like they’re pushing against the confines of the camera to get closer together, or that they’re being pulled toward one another without realizing. It conveys the intoxicating pull of a crush, leaning forward because they simply can’t be close enough.
How does that quote from Casablanca go? “Of all the bathrooms in all of London?” Something like that. Rye Lane is a shock to the system and the current landscape of romantic comedies. It’s loving, genuinely humorous, and an effortless crowd pleaser. A beautiful, energetic reminder that love is worth going after time and again.
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