Connect with us
Rye Lane review
Image: Sundance Film Festival

Film

Rye Lane Announces the Arrival of a New Cinematic Voice 

Sundance 2023: Rye Lane Review

Director Raine Allen-Miller has created a delightful take on the Before Sunrise formula, with the Sundance 2023 film Rye Lane, set in a very unique part of Southeast London 

On its face, Rye Lane, the new film from director Raine Allen-Miller that premiered at Sundance, sounds like it’s from the cinematic tradition of Richard Linklater’s Before Sunrise and its sequels and imitators: It’s about a man and woman who have just met, walking around a European city for the better part of a day. 

But Rye Lane is different and special. It has a highly unique look and makes fine use of the Peckham neighborhood of Southeast London. And it’s buoyed by two charming leads, David Jonsson (who plays Dom) and Vivian Oparah (Yas.) And it’s quick and breezy, running for just over 80 minutes. 

The film’s conceit is that they’ve both recently been dumped in a humiliating fashion, meeting by chance in a gender-neutral bathroom at a quirky art exhibition, and they decide to join forces. First, she’ll pose as his girlfriend in a meeting with his ex — who has dumped him for his best friend and now seeks his blessing for that relationship — and then they’ll assist one another in other capers. 

Over the course of the long day, there are confrontations with exes, professional disappointments, and exhibitions to steal valued record albums. And, as you may have guessed, the two start to develop romantic feelings of their own before long. 

With the film’s style, look, and pace, Rye Lane feels like it’s announcing the arrival of a new cinematic voice in the British filmmaker Raine Allen-Miller, one that offers the coolest, most original look of any film at this year’s Sundance. 

Is it “twee”? Perhaps it is, and lots of early reviews have compared it to the work of Wes Anderson, which is true in terms of color palette choices, but not so much when it comes to shot compositions. The film focuses on early ’90s hip-hop touchstones like Salt ‘n’ Pepa, which it’s hard to imagine Anderson ever putting in a film. And besides, I usually love things that are described as “twee.” 

The filmmaker has also chosen a great location, a part of London with many immigrants from different parts of Africa and the Caribbean. I’m not going to say the Peckham neighborhood has never been used for a film before — parts of Antonioni’s Blow-Up were shot there, in fact — but it’s never quite been made a main character in this way. 

The lead actors are also both outstanding, giving us sympathetic characters despite their messiness. Both stars are better known as London theater actors, although Jonsson is a regular on the HBO show Industry (he plays the gay, Black, rich finance guy, Gus), while Oparah had a small part on I May Destroy You.  

It’s all helped along by a witty script, credited to Nathan Byron and Tom Melia — one that lets the characters be huge messes in a way most romcoms don’t — plus fine cinematography by Olan Collardy. 

Produced with the help of various BBC entities, Rye Lane is set for a March 31 streaming release on Hulu, via Fox Searchlight. I can see it really emerging as a sleeper hit this spring. 

The 2023 Sundance Film Festival takes place from January 19th to 29th. Find all our coverage here.

Written By

Stephen Silver is a journalist and film critic based in the Philadelphia area. He is the co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle and a Rotten Tomatoes-listed critic since 2008, and his work has appeared in New York Press, Philly Voice, The Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Tablet, The Times of Israel, and RogerEbert.com. In 2009, he became the first American journalist to interview both a sitting FCC chairman and a sitting host of "Jeopardy" on the same day.

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Facebook

Trending

Kendrick Lamar Beats Drake For Album Of The Year At The BET Awards

Celebrity

Andor Creator Tony Gilroy Doesn’t Consider A Key Rogue One Relationship Canon

Film

Simon Guobadia Reportedly Deported To Nigeria After Porsha Williams Drama

Celebrity

‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Renewed for Fifth and Final Season

Film

The Met’s ‘Antony and Cleopatra’ Reframes Ancient Tragedy Through the Lens of Propaganda

Film

Fat Joe accused of sex acts with minors in $20 million lawsuit filed by former hype man, rapper denies allegations

Celebrity

Lil Wayne “Tha Carter VI” Review

Celebrity

Silento Breaks Silence After Getting Sentenced To 30 Years In Prison For Killing His Cousin

Celebrity

Taylor Rooks Seemingly Responds To Drake’s Mention In Unreleased Song From “ICEMAN” Livestream

Celebrity

Tyler Perry Pops Out At Beyonce Show In Paris Amid Sexual Assault Lawsuit

Celebrity

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3 Review: The Best Trek In Decades Doesn’t Miss A Beat

Film

Mello Buckzz’s Boyfriend Shot-&-Killed During Her Mixtape Release Party

News

F1 Review: Brad Pitt’s Sports Drama Has Exciting Racing Scenes And A Bloated Runtime

Film

Trippie Redd Reportedly Arrested In Miami For Mysterious Reasons

Celebrity

Eminem’s Stalker Gets Lengthy Prison Sentence For Home Invasion

News

Jurassic World Rebirth review: Scarlett Johansson and Jonathan Bailey help the franchise roar back to life

Film

Connect