Handsome Devil

"Follow the crowd, or follow your heart?"

2017 1h 35m EN

👍

7.0

SOLID

★7.0TMDB · 714

DramaComedy

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A music-mad 16-year-old outcast at a rugby-mad boarding school forms an unlikely friendship with his dashing new roommate.

“Follow the crowd, or follow your heart?”

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Where to watch · US

Cast

Fionn O'Shea
Ned Roche
Nicholas Galitzine
Conor Masters
Andrew Scott
Dan Sherry
Ardal O'Hanlon
Donal Roche
Amy Huberman
Natalie Roche
Ruairí O'Connor
Weasel
Michael McElhatton
Walter Curly
Moe Dunford
Pascal O'Keeffe

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: John Butler
Writers: John Butler
Languages: English
Countries: Ireland

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $1.1M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

ERA

Did you know

Released 9 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

RUNTIME

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor John O'Connor shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Fionn O'Shea and Nicholas Galitzine and Andrew Scott carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Follow the crowd, or follow your heart?".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt5016946 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

John Butler directs. John O'Connor cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Ireland. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $1.1M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Released 9 years ago.
3Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
4Editor John O'Connor shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Fionn O'Shea and Nicholas Galitzine and Andrew Scott carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "Follow the crowd, or follow your heart?".
7IMDB entry: tt5016946 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 11 themes, including "high school", "boarding school", "homophobia", "roommates".

The technical file

Editing: John O'Connor
Production design: Ferdia Murphy
Costume design: Kathy Strachan
Runtime: 95 min · 1h 35m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $1,050,000
Original language: EN
IMDB: Handsome Devil (2017)

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John Butler

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Reno2018-02-04
★ 7/10
Music, sport and then there's gay. I have seen many gay films, but I never felt very satisfied as this one. It removed all the cliches. You don't get a product like that often. I mean, despite being a gay film, there's no romance in it. But everything was told from a different aspect, like whether it is in the eye of sport, music, et cetera. Maybe if one film that families should watch regarding gay theme, that could be this one. Of course the families should be open minded on LGBT for that. Because the film does not promote gayism, but in a normal tone to say, it's about harassment being whatever you are. And at the end gives a fine message. Welcome to T18. I mean happy new year. This is my first review of the year. It is a good start for me being a cinephile. As I've said, it is a rare gem. An Irish film, but in English language. Remember, it is not even a British or Aussie, so the cast and crew are completely unknown. That means it is like watching some B movie. The initial setup reminded me 'Wild Child'. But that was an American film, from Americans perspective, how they see British boarding school. So if you are regular Hollywood teen film watcher, then you might feel slightly strange watching this. Because the students are obedient against their teacher, unlike American rebellious kids. -xX] There will come a point in the future when you won't have to lie anymore. [Xx- The film title might hint strongly that it is a gay romance, but as I said it was not. This is the story of two boys, but most of it was narrated from Ned's perspective. When his parents moved to Southwestern Asia for work, he was left behind at a boarding school. Among bullies, he's very popular for his sexual orientation. But it was never been confirmed, until a new roommate joins him. He's handsome and a rugby player, but they both put together for a talent show, where they have to prepare a song to sing. So the conflict of interest between sport and music surface and fuels further complication in what it is already out of control. This film was made last year, before that year was when the same-sex marriage legalised in Ireland. But the timeline of the film is unknown. Mostly like it just before the legalisation. Because seeing how the story happened, it all makes sense. Still a mixed response from the people, the gays are hesitating to come out of the closet. So the harassers still targeting such people, that's what this film is about. In addition to that, the story was told from the teenager's perspective, but I loved that small part of aspect from a teacher. That kind of looked like a bonus advantage of the film. Regarding Rugby, it was part of the storytelling, not the whole story. So whatever happen in the sporting event was a normal result than considered as a cliche. The same goes for the music part of the film too. It did delivered the message cleverly. The best of it was how these two themes were merged to get a wonderful awareness film. Not just one of the best gay film, but one of the best films of the year. Totally worth a watch! 7/10
CinemaSerf2022-03-27
★ 6/10
Quite an illustrative tale of conforming, this film. It is gay themed, but could equally apply to anyone new to an environment and who struggles to fit in. Here, two classmates who share a room form an unlikely bond; one a star sportsman and the other a bit of a pariah. It has two redeeming features of note - the use of sport as a positive conduit, albeit via a pretty circuitous route; and by allowing initially hostile characters to reprioritise their beliefs and accept a relationship that would otherwise attract their derision (as, indeed, it does initially). Fionn O'Shea and Nicholas Galitzine - with a bit of help from their teacher Andrew Scott - contribute well, with a strong, plausible, script to make for a decent drama.
kinrich302026-08-30
★ 9/10
To me it was wonderfully acted and very well written. It tells a heartwarming story about two young gay men in a very positive way. I think I've watched it about 4 times already. What also makes it interesting is that it does not turn into a romance, it is just two gay students who become best friends.