Young gay Philip Benjamin (Angus Macfadyen) comes out of the closet because he is madly in love with American graphic artist Elliott (Corey Parker). His friends support him, but when he comes out to his parents, he stirs up hidden feelings and secrets in their relationship. His book editor mother Rose (Eileen Atkins) believes that "keeping certain secrets secret is essential to the general balance of life," but Philip's honesty precipitates a crisis that threatens to tear the family apart. This is because Philip's academic father Owen (Brian Cox) leads a secret life, hiding his own homosexuality from Rose while spending his Sundays in porn cinemas. Owen has been crippled emotionally by years of deceit, and he is incapable of having an honest relationship with his wife, his son, or any of the men whom he meets. When he learns that Philip is gay an emotional dam breaks, years of self-loathing pour out, and he decides to tell the truth. Philip and Owen find freedom when they come out, but in many ways Rose's dilemma is the key to this film. Philip's revelation helps her to understand that she has known all along about her husband's homosexuality, and that keeping secrets is far more damaging than revealing them. Yet she is left feeling "like the punch line of some terrible joke" even as her husband and son are set free.
"The Lost Language of Cranes" is a compelling examination of the consequences of honesty, both good and bad. Acting is top-notch in this BBC made for TV movie. The film was censored in the US for both its PBS airing and its VHS release. PBS was coming under fire by conservative groups in the early 1990's for presenting programming showing homosexuality and nudity. Original music was composed by Julian Wastall. Sean Mathias wrote the screenplay from David Leavitt's acclaimed novel. The book is set in NYC with American characters, but the film takes place in London with most of the characters British. Nigel Finch directed.
