Supernova Parent Guide

Tusker (Stanley Tucci) has early-onset dementia, and it’s getting worse. His partner, Sam (Colin Firth), is determined to make the most of whatever time Tusker has left so the two set out on a road trip across England to catch up with family and friends. But dementia doesn’t take holidays, and Tusker’s cognitive decline becomes increasingly hard to ignore. Although Sam intended the trip to be relaxing, both men must confront unspoken fears about their relationship and Tusker’s health.

In character dramas, casting is everything. Thankfully, both Colin Firth and Stanley Tucci are phenomenal. For two heterosexual men, the pair have some remarkable chemistry on screen. Both do some very emotional heavy lifting in bringing meaning and significance to long silences and brief glances. If nothing else, the two deserve some credit for spending so much time crying, which has to make for some very emotionally draining work days. Just be grateful your job doesn’t require performative lachrymation.

Content is almost solely limited to profanity, with one non-sexual scene of posterior nudity and occasional social drinking. There’s also a very PG-13 scene of two men making out in bed – Brokeback Mountain this ain’t. However, the emotionally difficult and mature subject matter make this a poor choice for teens – or, for that matter, date night. (Unless, of course, you’re hoping your date will sob on your shoulder, in which case this film might fit the bill.)

Another plus for Supernova film is the runtime, which is surprisingly brief for a romantic drama. Based on the trailer, I was fully braced for a 2+ hour ordeal, which is thankfully not the case. It’s even more impressive that the filmmakers have managed to work such a complex personal story into such a small window, and that it feels fully realized within those confines.

Supernova is what my mother would refer to as a “three Kleenex movie”. If you’re going to watch this, you’re basically committing to 90 minutes of content deliberately designed to make you sad. The plot is tragic, and that’s the point. Supernova explores what degenerative dementia does to people, both to patients and their families. It’s not an easy watch, but it is a good one.