AKA

Duncan Roy’s latest film tells its story in “simultaneous triptych”, i.e. three panels.   Set in late-70s England, it’s the autobiographical story of a young man, gay and working-class, who impersonates an aristocrat’s son and is able to infiltrate British high society, which is depicted as utterly hateful.   The three-panel approach allows for us to observe telling details of the setting and to watch characters who are not the center of attention.   For the most part, all three panels take place in the same time and space (although sometimes they’re subtly staggered).   However, sometimes one panel shows the ongoing story while the others work as counterpoint, showing something that happened in the past or in another place.   Roy doesn’t use the technique as a gimmick but rather to amplify the themes.

- May 5, 2004