Downriver

Although I'm marking this as having spoilers, for the benefit of anyone decding whether or not to watch this, they're minimal, and you'll work out what they are very soon after starting to watch. Although homosexuality is there in the plot it's not central to it. With a few strokes of the pen, the dead child could just as easily have been a girl, as could the young neighbour who the lead character befriends. Neither change would have significantly affected the plot. It's nice to see, therefore, that the writer/director chose not to go "the safe way". It helps demonstrate that just because you are gay, not everything has to be about that. The plot itself is good, perhaps a little predictable as the story develops, but carried well by a strong cast and there's a emotional depth throughout. It certainly kept me wanting to watch it through to its conclusion.