‘Of an Age’ is a romantic drama that follows Kol, a young Serbian-born Australian immigrant who spends an intense 24 hour period with a friend’s older brother, discovering a lot about the world and himself.
The film, split in two parts, firstly focuses on Kol as a teenager. We follow the young man as he receives a call from his friend Ebony, his dance partner. The two were due to compete in their high-school ballroom finals, but due to Ebony’s careless exploits the night before, the two miss the competition. In trying to track Ebony down, Kol is driven around by Ebony’s brother Adam.
As the day wears on, Kol and Adam spend more time together, with Kol discovering Adam is gay. Conflicted, the young man ends up seeking him out, attending a party he knows Adam may be at. The two end up leaving the house-party to go for a drive, at the end of which they open up to each other and spend the night together. The two depart not knowing when and if they may see each other again as Adam is due to depart to South America in pursuit of his PhD research.
The film picks up ten years later, as Kol and Adam return to Melbourne for Ebony’s wedding. There, the two reconnect, and Kol discovers Adam is married. Thrown by the realization, Kol distances himself, yet the two end up walking to Kol’s hotel together. There, the two embrace and reminisce of their time together ten years ago.
‘Of an Age’ is very human. It follows Kol who, whilst young and naive, manages to exhibit an enormous capacity for dealing with his newfound emotions without resorting to melodramatic overtures. His journey of discovering himself and dealing with questions surrounding his sexuality are dealt with in a touching and stirring manner, with the film being able to address the gravity of such an emotional time in the young person’s life.
The second part of the film, whist devastating from Kol’s perspective, somehow does not manage to deliver as striking a conclusion as may have been expected. The film does return to, and reminisce of, the time Kol and Adam had spent together, highlighting the impact that experience had left on Kol, but rather than creating for a destructive climax, the film concludes on a more tonally quiet and sombre note, with Kol agonizing over the beauty of the moment and his inability to recapture that magic.
Intimate and sincere, ‘Of an Age’ delivers a very private retelling of a personal history that swings through a turbulent time in the main character’s life, squeezing a world of emotion into a 24-hour window, delivering for a life changing experience for Kol and a soul-stirring experience for the audience.
In large part thanks to the two main characters Kol and Adam, played by Elias Anton and Thom Green respectively, the two men create an intense and genuine connection, illustrating a real and frank relationship. Anton and Green manage to shift seamlessly between their younger and older counterparts during the shift between 1999 and 2010, exhibiting personal growth and development, whilst staying true to their core. The romance may not have a happy ending, but the two actors allow us to understand how real and impactful their time together had been.
Not overtly sentimental, ‘Of an Age’ queries Kol’s formative experience and allows for a private exploration of his sexuality and emotional depth. Even if the film delivers a hushed finale, the journey there is filled with joy, heartbreak and growth, allowing us to relive ‘Kol’s’ best and worst times with him.
Score: 3/4
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