Ben and Suzanne, A Reunion in 4 Parts

For a film pivoted on dialogue, my takeaway has been a phrase. Pent-up anger we all know. I am going to use an expression whose copyright rests in the film with Ben and Ben alone: pent-up tenderness.

Seneviratne’s rom-com is a funny yet heartfelt look into a complicated relationship, in all its ups and downs, from heated disagreements to playful moments exploring scenic Sri Lanka.

Aspects of relationship dynamics that are often left unseen in movies, in favour of more dramatic arguments, are explored with wit in this film.

Although the references to an empire gone mad are not subtle, the thrust of Ben and Suzanne is how an interracial relationship can serve as a metaphor for that which is reconcilable between alien cultures and that which never will be.