There are many ways to identify a great filmmaker, but one of the most reliable methods is whether they turn the most simple premise into a profoundly moving experience. In an industry driven by spectacle and artistic innovation, sometimes the most effective works entail a director simply having a good story, a room in which it can be told, a couple of actors that can recite the lines, and a camera to record all of it. This is a very reductive way of looking at film, and it can even be seen as distasteful, since it contradicts many ideas of what makes going to the cinema so enchanting. Yet, a great filmmaker should be able to take such limitations and weave together something memorable, with even the most mundane material becoming fascinating under their direction. This was the case for Sophie Hyde, whose film Good Luck to You, Leo Grande immediately propels her to a place of being a filmmaker to which we should start paying attention. Not her first film, but rather the one that offers her something of a breakthrough, she works with screenwriter Katy Brand to tell the story of a widowed schoolteacher who hires a young male escort to help her realize the fantasies she was never able to satiate while married, only to find their professional relationship becoming much more complex, relieving them both of the deep-seated traumas they both carry with them. It’s in Good Luck to You, Leo Grande that we find a film of incredible artistic integrity, a simple but evocative comedy that hides some deeper meaning behind its hilarious exterior. Upbeat but not without its moments of genuine pathos, this film works on numerous levels, and becomes an enchanting glimpse into an intergenerational relationship that came about by chance, but was destined to manifest, perhaps not in this specific form, but in a way that highlights the deeper themes that propel the narrative.

Good Luck to You, Leo Grande is a film that is profoundly theatrical, in the literal sense. It is structured like a play in nearly every aspect, from the single location in which the vast majority of the story takes place, to the fact that there are only two major characters, making it a two-hander in many ways. However, while this has often been a line of criticism used against films that are seemingly incapable of realizing the limitless boundaries that come when translating a work from stage to the screen, this is one in which this approach is actually much better suited. Firstly, it was not originally designed as a traditional play, but rather loosely constructed by Brand, who works with Hyde and the two leads to create a work that draws on their own experiences, which are then worked into the story to give it a very authentic sensation, and allow it feel much more genuine in how it approaches some very complex themes that would otherwise be avoided by more mainstream films. Placing these characters in a single hotel room for almost the entire duration of the film, and having them engage in what is essentially an extremely long conversation that touches on every theme, from one’s daily routine to their deepest desires, allows the film to stand as bare as these characters by the end, with very little room to hide anything, which is the entire purpose of the story as a whole. There is a lot of nuance to how Hyde puts this film together, and even structuring it in distinct acts, each one a different meeting between the two characters, helps to create the feeling that we are watching two individuals sparring over the course of an indeterminate period of time, revealing their innermost secrets to someone who they barely know, but yet who represents everything they needed in order to feel the emotional and psychological catharsis that they were both so desperately craving.

Considering how simple the premise and execution was, it’s hardly surprising that Good Luck to You, Leo Grande is a film that is mainly propelled by the performances, and the two leads are absolutely extraordinary, playing off each other incredibly well. It is unfortunately cliched to refer to what Dame Emma Thompson was doing here as “brave”, since any time an older actress steps out of what is supposedly the predetermined roles appropriate to performers of their age, they’re treated like they’re not only moving out of their comfort zone, but doing something revolutionary. To an extent, this is true, and Thompson has consistently been one of the most reliable performers when it comes to pushing boundaries – but there is nothing about this character that warrants the resounding praises that make it seem like she was going beyond the limits of what an actress of her stature should do. Unfortunately, the industry is dominated by discourse that states that older bodies are not desirable, so it is easy to view her decision to take on this character as challenging. This isn’t to invalidate her willingness to play this role, but rather to highlight the fact that it is a beautiful performance, regardless of how surprising some of the decisions made by Thompson may be. What makes her performance Good Luck to You, Leo Grande so successful is not that she is willing to work with such risque material, but that she is able to find the nuance in between these moments – its the aspect that turns this film from a potentially excessive sex comedy to a poignant, achingly funny meditation on desire and sexuality amongst a portion of the population that are viewed as puritanical and celibate. Thompson’s ability to reinvent herself through the characters she plays is always impressive, and her willingness to take on this material is certainly striking, but not as much as the detail with which she approaches the character, which is certainly some of her best work to date.

However, as impressive as Thompson may be in the film (although this seems redundant – she is almost always brilliant), Good Luck to You, Leo Grande mainly works when we factor in her co-star, since the entire film depends on their ability to work with each other, and without the commitment of one, the other simply could not having been nearly as good as the final film suggests. Daryl McCormack is an extremely promising young actor, and he has a strong breakthrough here, playing the titular Leo Grande, a man that may be physically perfect and the very embodiment of many people’s desires, but carries the same insecurities as the older woman with whom he starts an unexpected friendship. The chemistry between the two leads is staggering – it’s not often we find a pairing of an older veteran with a relative newcomer being so symbiotic, and yet it works so perfectly here. Credit must be given to the director, who viewed the creation of this film as more than just a simple comedy driven by a script filled with witty one-liners and interesting anecdotes, but rather as a vibrant, malleable collaboration between her actors, who are given the opportunity to share their perspective, and to be given a space in which they can be vulnerable. Good Luck to You, Leo Grande is a film about exposure, both physical and emotional, the two interweaving exceptionally well, to the point where the eventual act of sexual intercourse is not a demonstration of satiating desire, but rather of exhilarating catharsis, a moment of being liberated from the burden of the past, which both of these characters have been carrying with them. It’s a surprisingly deep film, and the sense of deep respect between the actors, not solely as performers but as individuals with a deep passion for the themes that underpin the film, makes Good Luck to You, Leo Grande so incredibly poignant.

What is perhaps most meaningful about Good Luck to You, Leo Grande is how it presents itself as a very forthright comedy about sexuality and intimacy, but conceals a much deeper meaning just behind this veneer. It’s interestingly not a film about shaming either sex workers or the people who employ their services, but it is not limited to these often near-anonymous transactions of services, instead using it as a starting point for a poignant story of rediscovering oneself, whether it is at the beginning of one’s adult life, or quite late into it. We have all heard the hackneyed sayings normally formed around the adage that it is never too late for a second chance, which is primarily what Hyde and Brand her investigating here, using the story of two people who were initially supposed to be nothing but a businessman and his client becoming friends, and discovering more about themselves through opening up to the other. Good Luck to You, Leo Grande is a film about healing more than anything else, and while it is outrageously funny, it means much more than the awfully reductive label of “sex comedy” that is thrown onto this film deserves – not that it sees lust and sexual fantasy as anything shameful (in fact, it is incredibly positive in its perspective on one’s prerogative to explore themselves and their innermost desires, and to express them in their own way, granted it is within the realm of both reason and legality), but rather that it sees this act as more than just physical contact. These ideas are all integral to how Hyde engages with Brand’s script, which was fantastic at the start, but was made even better through the collaboration between the director and her cast, who shaped it and created something even more meaningful through engaging with its fundamental themes and finding new ways of exploring these often intimidating and perhaps even outright controversial ideas.

Without the incredible word-of-mouth response it has received over the last few months, it would be easy to overlook Good Luck to You, Leo Grande, since a quick glance is not enough to encompass all the intriguing ideas contained within the relatively compact exterior of this film. The first few scenes do make it seem like the film is heading in the direction of being an irreverent and mindless sex comedy, based around the odd couple scenario that is often a crutch for writers trying to use common patterns to facilitate some of their ideas. However, as venture further into the film, we start to see that it is much more than this – there are numerous layers of complexity that guide the film and make it so meaningful, which work in conjunction with the many moments of upbeat humour to create a situation in which the viewer is invited to laugh and relish in the comedy, but not at the expense of the lingering melancholy, which is as essential to the story as the humour. This was likely a far more difficult film to make than we’d initially imagine, since it is aiming to investigate its central ideas with far more detail than more traditional comedies, being subversive in the areas that are more often than not seen as fodder for cheap jokes, rather than insightful analysis, which is the foundation on which this film is built. Good Luck to You, Leo Grande is a tremendously endearing film with some excellent ideas, and it takes its premise and turns it from a simple comedy centred on sex, transforming it into a witty, insightful character study that has many astonishing ideas, but where the most important message is quite simply that it is never too late for a second chance – whether it be at love or life, there’s always an opportunity to reinvent yourself and pursue your ambitions, which can be truly liberating, as demonstrated throughout this charming but meaningful film.