The Blue Caftan (2022)
Where this movie excels is with the subtle but personal performances from the cast. And the fact that this three way love drama isn’t built around conflict or one of them ruining the relationship. Everyone is given an honest treatment of their character and shown respect for who they are. At the center of the story Halim, a closeted gay tailor, though it perhaps even more about many other things. His wife Mina becomes in a way even more the main character as everyone else relates and reacts to her in one way or another. Like many other films exploring the theme of repressed sexuality, the one thing that flows through and effects everybody is how being forced to repress ones true self due to cultural norms - everyone looses and suffers from being denied a life they could have lived. But this movie isn’t just that. It also shows a love for handmade clothes and how love between two people who have been together for decades is different than newfound love.
It is a slow movie with many lingering shots and closeups of faces, hands, threads and needles. Perhaps a bit too slow even for that kind of film, because at just over 2 hours it does feel like it hides a better slightly shorter version of itself.
Rating: 3.5