Movie Review: Road of Bygones

I was really excited when Astrid Ovalles asked me to review her movie, Road of Bygones. I have only ever really written book and sex toy reviews, so this was new for me. I hope I did it justice. 

When I was a student, my friend and I used to visit an arthouse once a month. We’d pick a “cultural” movie to watch and have dinner and drinks afterwards to discuss the movie. Since I started working full time I hardly ever go to the cinema in general, let alone to a more cultural movie theatre. In fact, I don’t even know if there is anything other than a commercial movie theatre in my home town.

I was just commenting to my husband that I miss watching non-blockbuster movies. There’s nothing wrong with a good Hollywood production, but sometimes I want more. Maybe I need to dig deeper into Netflix to get what I want, but I find it very hard to wade through everything that’s on offer and find something good.

What’s it about?

Which is why, when Astrid asked me to review Road of Bygones, I jumped at the chance. And I am so happy I did. The movie is described as follows:

Three women embark on a road trip to retrieve the ashes of a figure from the past. Throughout their journey, they struggle with their odd dynamic and are forced to confront the taboo that is their past and present.

“Road of Bygones” is a glimpse into the reality of a lesbian D/s relationship and the search for acceptance from those who we adore.

At the beginning of the film, Bobbi gets a text from her father saying that her mother has died. She calls her sister Sam, asking her to meet in a church. There, she tells Sam the news and they both decide to go on a road trip together to get their mother’s ashes from their aunt Laura.

Bobbi is in a D/s relationship with Ally. Throughout the road trip, Sam tries to understand the dynamic between Ally and Bobbi and asks some quite inappropriate questions. She is not trying to be mean, she is merely trying to understand a relationship that is outside the norm. Bobbi and Sam also work through some unresolved issues between the two of them.

What did I think?

I LOVED Road of Bygones. I don’t even know how to begin to describe how much I loved it. From the opening scene with Bobbi and Ally engaged in a play session, it pulled me right in. The music is very atmospheric and compliments the movie very well. There were moments I cried, moments I laughed out loud and moments I cringed.

The acting was superb. I especially loved the scene in the church where Bobbi and Sam see each other again after a long absence and it really feels like two sisters just being silly with each other. There is real chemistry between the three women.

I loved the portrayal of the D/s relationship between Bobbi and Ally and how delicate that balance is. Also, how the sub in a D/s relationship has power as well. That was something that Sam tried to understand, and in the end, she realised that people just choose each other, whether their relationship is traditional or not.

The movie treats its audience as intelligent grown-ups, which I really appreciated. Nothing is spelt out that doesn’t need spelling out. We are left to draw our own conclusions and to infer meaning from looks between the characters and their body language. That does not mean that the movie was confusing, not at all!

It’s not very often that I watch a movie and still think about it weeks later. But Road of Bygones is exactly such a movie. I watched it almost a month ago and still think about parts that I loved. And, of course, I love the fact that it’s a movie by women featuring women. And not just any women: two lesbian women in a D/s relationship. Good luck finding that on mainstream television or other media!

I was able to watch Road of Bygones for free in exchange for this review. This in no way affects my opinion of the movie. I would gladly pay to watch this movie again (which I will likely do because it gave me all the happy feelings!). If you want to watch a movie that sensitively portrays a lesbian D/s relationship, then I can’t recommend Road of Bygones enough.

Road of Bygones is available for rent on Vimeo.