The Lost Language of Cranes (1992)

A movie that is less about homosexuality and more about family secrets, The Lost Language of Cranes revolves around the compelling premise of a well-adjusted gay man outing his own father when he announces he is gay. The comfortable, healthy gay lifestyle of Phillip (Angus MacFadyen), serves as a direct contrast to that of his father, Owen Benjamin (Brian Cox), who is living a lie just across town. While the family patriarch spends his weeks as a straight man co-habitating with his wife Rose, his weekends are consumed with secret trips to the gay porno theatre. Cox's depiction of a man with a secret is so convincing that it is difficult to feel anything other than disgust towards him, while Eileen Aitkins' Rose is so controlling and measured that it seems not unlikely she could avoid the truth about her husband for many years. Through Phillip's relationship with his boyfriend, meanwhile, director Nigel Finch pushes viewers to explore the theories surrounding homosexuality -- is it a matter of genetics or environment? Lost Language benefits from acting that is inspirational and expressive, and from characters made to seem extremely real through their very human strengths and weaknesses. ~ Laura Abraham, All Movie Guide