'Heated Rivalry’s Creator Co-Wrote This Underseen Film Starring Kit Harington and Natalie Portman

Those who followed the arthouse film circuit may remember the unusual hype and intrigue surrounding the release of The Death & Life of John F. Donovan, which served as the first English-language feature from writer/director Xavier Dolan. Dolan had impressed so many international audiences with his breathtaking coming-of-age drama Mommy that it seemed as if his next project could catapult him to even more success. It was after years of reported editing issues and narrative changes, including Jessica Chastain being cut from the film altogether, that The Death & Life of John F. Donovan eventually debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival, where it was met with a collective shrug by critics. While certainly not as masterful as Dolan’s previous work, The Death & Life of John F. Donovan is nonetheless a fascinating example of original storytelling that touches on compelling ideas about celebrity and sexuality.

The Death & Life of John F. Donovan has a non-linear narrative, as the film centers on the strange relationship between an acclaimed movie star and a bullied young boy, who are both treated as “outsiders” by their communities. Rupert Turner (Jacob Tremblay) is harassed by homophobic bullies at his school, and decides to reach out to the famous movie star John Donovan (Kit Harington). Donovan surprisingly responds, which leads Rupert to develop an obsession with the actor, even though not even his mother (Natalie Portman) believes him. Years later, an older Rupert (Ben Schnetzer) tells his story to the reporter Audrey Newhouse (Thandiwe Newton) about his memories of the blockbuster actor, who died under somewhat contested circumstances. Dolan and his co-writer, Jacob Tierney, who would go on to create Heated Rivalry, cannot be accused of lacking ambition. The Death & Life of John F. Donovan can be described in many ways, but it is certainly not boring.

‘The Death & Life of John F. Donovan’ Has an Unusually Stacked Ensemble Cast

While it's understandable that many American actors took an interest in working with Dolan after he became such a hot director within arthouse film circles, The Death & Life of John F. Donovan is so stacked with supporting characters played by celebrities that it is almost distracting. Susan Sarandon and Kathy Bates have juicy supporting roles as Donovan’s mother and manager, respectively, and the late great Michael Gambon serves as both the narrator and a minor character who appears for a single scene. While this does detract from the realism, it does fit within the unique way in which Rupert has perceived the world; he’s been so traumatized by the people in his real life that the world that he sees in cinema feels more authentic than his reality. As a result, it’s hard to completely determine how much of the story is Rupert’s projection; it’s possible that either Donovan wasn’t as emotionally involved in the letters as he had imagined, or that the actor’s death was a result of more complex issues that Rupert couldn’t comprehend at the time because of his youth. Although there are enough scenes told exclusively from Donovan’s perspective to preclude that segment of the film as being a complete fantasy on Rupert’s part, Dolan certainly knew what he was doing when assembling a team of A-listers.

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The narrative of The Death & Life of John F. Donovan can be hard to follow, as there was clearly a heavy amount of post-production work done that made it seem as if entire segments were cut out. However, the film features strong turns from its entire cast, and offers a greater opportunity for both Tremblay and Harington to show their range during a particularly important period in both of their careers. While Tremblay had charmed awards voters with his breakthrough performance in Room, The Death & Life of John F. Donovan showed that he could play a character dealing with more complex interpersonal issues. Similarly, Harington was able to show the deep feelings of regret, shame, and loneliness felt by a character with incredible privilege, which is a quality that has recently made his performance in Industry such a standout.

‘The Death & Life of John F. Donovan’ Is Not a Complete Disaster

As with many films that bite off more than they can chew, The Death & Life of John F. Donovan was widely mocked for some of its more absurd moments, even if they don’t represent the deeper ideas that Dolan was hinting at. Given Dolan’s history of telling mature, thoughtful stories about the LGBTQ community, The Death & Life of John F. Donovan stands as a particularly knowing analysis about two characters who struggle to admit their sexuality, despite having seemingly opposite experiences; Rupert comes from a humble background and fears that he won’t be able to gain the acceptance of his community, and Donovan faces anxiety on whether his career as a star could disappear overnight. The parallels drawn between the characters, while occasionally obtuse, do speak to underdiscussed issues about Hollywood representation.

The unfortunate reality is that The Death & Life of John F. Donovan was never given a wide enough release for diverse voices to engage in a thoughtful dialogue about what did and didn’t work. Since TIFF is frequented by awards pundits and critics trying to write pull quotes that might be used in studio marketing campaigns, The Death & Life of John F. Donovan was almost instantly forgotten about because it was never a serious Oscar contender. However, the newfound popularity of Tierney's work may hopefully lead to a reassessment of a film that was unabashedly sincere, and occasionally profound.

The Death & Life of John F. Donovan is available to stream on Prime Video in the U.S.

Release Date March 13, 2019

Runtime 127 minutes

Writers Jacob Tierney

Producers Lyse Lafontaine