“My Policeman,” an Amazon Studios film directed by Michael Grandage, offers a moving story about forbidden love and wasted time but lacks depth and emotional complexity. 

The film takes place in 1950s Britain when homosexuality was illegal and follows a love triangle between Tom Burgess, a closeted police officer, his wife Marion Taylor and Tom’s lover, Patrick Hazelwood.

“My Policeman” does a good job of acknowledging the unfair, heartbreaking reality gay people faced at this time in Britain as they were forced to either repress their sexuality or risk going to jail. However, the film fails to fully commit to the feelings of desperation, regret, longing and misery that its characters experience, which keeps the story shallow.

The film stars Harry Styles as young Tom, David Dawson as young Patrick, Emma Corrin as young Marion, Gina McKee as older Marion, Linus Roache as older Tom and Rupert Everett as older Patrick. 

Dawson and McKee undoubtedly give the best performances in this film. Dawson’s performance conveys the rawest emotion and illustrates the complexity of his character’s experience. McKee’s tasteful performance added needed depth to the character of Marion. McKee’s acting toward the end of the film helped tie the story together in the film’s final moments. 

Styles and Corrin both give good performances, but neither actor can fully convey the intense, tangled feelings of their characters with the necessary passion and vulnerability. 

This film is a tear-jerker; the ending is very touching, but it would’ve been better if the story explored the inner turmoil of its characters more thoroughly. 

The film begins with an older Patrick being dropped off in a wheelchair at Marion and Tom’s house after suffering a stroke. Marion takes care of Patrick while Tom appears uncomfortable and even miserable at the fact that Patrick is staying at his house. At this point, we start to see flashbacks from Marion’s young adult life when she first met Tom, whom she would later marry. The flashbacks slowly let the audience in on the story of Tom, Marion and Patrick. Flashbacks from Patrick and Tom’s point of view are shown as older Marion reads Patrick’s diary. 

In the flashbacks, both Marion and Patrick want Tom for themselves. Patrick is willing to endure the pain of sharing Tom with Marion but struggles with the reality of that situation. Marion is willing to move past Tom’s affair with Patrick, but isn’t willing to accept the reality of what she views as Tom’s “unnatural tendencies.” 

Tom’s place at the center of this love triangle is only believable because of Styles’ sex appeal, charm and warmth. It is much harder to believe Tom is at the center due to a personal, unique bond between Tom and either Patrick or Marion. The film doesn’t showcase any distinctive bond between Tom and Patrick or Marion because it lacks complex dialogue and fails to prioritize personality. 

Overall, the film illustrates the tragic story of three characters yearning for long-lasting, authentic love who ultimately faced lies, jealousy and heartbreak due to prejudice and intolerance. The film isn’t as powerful and emotionally stirring as it could have been due to slightly flat performances and a shallow storyline. 

“My Policeman” is available for for streaming on Amazon Prime Video.