Rye Lane

A single day in Peckham and Brixton, in south London. Dom is overheard crying in a toilet cubicle at a gallery opening; Yas, on the other side of the door, offers abuse rather than comfort. They are then introduced through a mutual friend, and they walk for the rest of the day. Both have just come out of relationships; Dom has already arranged to meet his ex, and Yas wants a record back from her ex's flat. Raine Allen-Miller's first film. Its visual language announces itself at once: a fisheye lens, streets painted in pink, blue and green, colour far past what is credible. Peckham is usually used in British films as a backdrop for poverty; here it is deliberately shot as beautiful. Its best idea is letting the characters walk into their own memories as they describe them: the person talking stands in the middle of the past scene while it continues around them. David Jonsson plays Dom and Vivian Oparah plays Yas. It premiered at Sundance in 2023. A short, energetic choice for anyone who likes romantic comedies that happen on foot. For a viewer with no patience for a fisheye lens and a permanently high tempo, the visual style may be tiring.