The Reel Review
An undercover cop tasked with arresting gay men for soliciting sex in a shopping mall restroom in 1997 Syracuse finds both his career and personal life upended after becoming attracted to one of his intended targets. Tom Blyth (Billy the Kid, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes) and Russell Tovey (Years and Years, Looking, The Pass) star in this LGBTQ+ romantic drama.
In his feature film debut, writer/director Carmen Emmi incorporates lots of fever dream-like visuals and artsy camerawork as he captures the mind-spinning confusion young police officer Lucas (Blyth) experiences as a result of his attraction to Andrew (Tovey), who it turns out is married with children. Solid performances from the two leads give the otherwise threadbare story a huge dose of authenticity.
The time jumps between flashbacks of Lucas and Andrew’s brief relationship and the film’s big present day New Year’s Eve climax are a bit clumsy and not initially apparent, but Emmi keeps the tension taut and the story unpredictable and twisty as the film captures the unrelenting psychological stress and paranoia that closeted gay men experienced in the mid 90s.
REEL FACTS
• Plainclothes won the Special Jury Award Ensemble at 2025’s Sundance Film Festival and won the 2026 GLAAD Media award winner for Outstanding Film in Limited Release.
• Julliard educated Tom Blyth is in a relationship with actress Daniela Norman. Russell Tovey was previously in a relationship with rugby player and coach Steve Brockman.
• Plainclothes was set and filmed in Syracuse, New York.
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