With truly stunning central performances from Watkins and Valentine that are rooted in reality, Geronto, screening at the Edinburgh Film Festival, is a film about the healing properties of touch and the power of finally being seen, heard, and held by someone who shares our sense of loneliness and apprehension.
Written by Christopher Sherwood, based on his own experience, Geronto, screening at the Edinburgh International Film Festival, is a beautiful short film that asks a pertinent question: why is age-difference intimacy such a taboo? And what effects does this taboo have on our sense of self, our feelings of visibility and belonging, and our broader sense of inclusion in the gay community?
Shot in London, the film follows two men at different stages of their lives yet united in loneliness. BAFTA Winner Jason Watkins’ older man has arrived in London for a weekend away from his home in Devon with a wish to finally embrace the sexuality he has kept hidden for so long, while Noah Valentine’s younger man is attempting to navigate his secret attraction to older men – an attraction he keeps firmly hidden from his friends and family. As they meet in a small gay pub in a residential area, sparks fly between them as they strike up a conversation at the bar, leading them to the older man’s hotel room. Yet at the heart of this encounter is a painful misunderstanding that will test them both, and shine a light on the damaging stereotypes that too often define queer intimacy across generations.
Speaking about Geronto before its Edinburgh premiere, director Mark Pluck said, “At its heart, Geronto is a story of self-discovery between two men from entirely different generations. Rather than sensationalise the atypical dynamic of their relationship, the film focuses on the universal, deeply human qualities that shape their bond – the desire for connection, intimacy, and belonging. This has been my guiding light throughout the project’s development: honouring the simple truth that gender, sexual orientation, and age fall away when a genuine bond forms between two people. I hope that audiences leave the film with a more nuanced perspective on relationships and the many forms they can take.”
Age gaps within relationships, both casual and long-term, have long divided opinion and created toxic speculation and judgement, particularly in online spaces. Yet, social acceptance of age gaps in relationships has never been a level playing field; for example, society has often praised older heterosexual men who date younger women as being studs. In comparison, young women have faced backlash and scorn for dating older men, with labels such as gold diggers and home wreckers. In the gay male community, negative connotations of age-gap relationships often date back to views of gay men as predators, with words such as paedophile still used to devastating effect when older gay men engage with young adult gay men socially or sexually. At the same time, the gay male community itself has attached labels based on age, from Daddy to Twink, each carrying their own damaging stereotypes.
The result is a society where younger gay adults often actively avoid older gay adults, with apps like Grindr often openly encouraging this division. Yet surely love is love no matter the age difference between two consenting adults? Surely we should just be supportive if it’s clear that their relationship, whether fleeting, short or long, is built on love, shared growth and togetherness. Geronto poses these questions through a brief, poignant, and powerful story that asks whether judgements, stereotypes, and damaging labels surrounding age are only increasing loneliness and disconnect.
With truly stunning central performances from Watkins and Valentine that are rooted in reality, Geronto is a film about the healing properties of touch, whether we are 25 or 65, and the power of finally being seen, heard, and held by someone who shares our sense of loneliness and apprehension. It is a film about our shared human experience, no matter the stage of adult life we are in, or the partner we choose. Yet it is also a film about the social walls we erect between us based on a fear of judgement – walls that often stop love from ever forming, keeping us separate and further dividing our communities into pockets of loneliness built on a fear of age that only increases our sense of isolation.
Geronto won the Grand Prize Alternative Spirit (LGBTQ) Short Award at its world premiere at the Rhode Island Film Festival and screens at the Edinburgh International Film Festival in the Out of Competition shorts programme.
Follow Us