My Policeman by Bethan Roberts is a novel written in 2012 that recently hit the cinema screens in a new adaptation. The story is set in classical Brighton where the seaside city encapsulates post-war England as muted and traditional. Both forms follow the complex love-triangle between Marion (Emma Corrin) a school teacher, Tom (Harry Styles), a policeman and Patrick (David Dawson) an art gallery curator.
In the novel, we are introduced to a gradual, natural progression between Marion and Tom as we get a first-hand look at their interactions as friends. Tom teaches Marion to swim in the sea which shifts their relationship to be more intimate and allows the characters to begin to see each other in a romantic light. There are many occasions leading up to Tom and Marions’ engagement that are nuanced in order to build up their connection.
In comparison to the film, it fails to capture these essential moments. The film rushes into some of the minor events but glosses over them as we see Tom teaching Marion to swim in a swimming pool jumping to a cut of Marion and Patricks’ first introduction.
The lack of foundation of Marion and Tom’s relationship makes it seem more disposable and fails to display the full extent of frustration and breakdown Marion must have endured when Tom and Patricks’ romance began to unfold.
For more context and some spoilers, Tom meets Patrick after a scuffle in the street which causes Patrick to report it to Tom. This sparks their friendship as Patrick notices his attractiveness and calls on Tom to be drawn for an exhibition being held at the museum.
Moreover, these first exchanges remain somewhat covert in the film. Whereas the book goes into much more depth and similarly builds up their relationship parallel to Tom and Marions'.
Both the film and novel move between different perspectives. In the book, each chapter is either from Marion's past monologue, Marion's present monologue or Patricks’ diary. This is interpreted differently in the film as there is more emphasis on Marions’ present monologue.
A significant part of the plot is that we are placed in the present at Tom and Marions’ house in 1999. Their home is eerie, and their relationship is hostile with little communication.
However, this is disrupted when the arrival of Patrick occurs after he has had a debilitating stroke. In an attempt to reconcile Marion’s past wrongdoings, she attempts to bring together Tom and Patrick once more, even though it is apparent it may be too late.
The pacing of the film is much quicker as we jump to key events without as much explanation compared to the book. Tom and Patricks’ relationship is one of passion, depth and bond which is exemplified through scenes of secret intimacy and idyllic adventure.
Tom and Patrick travel to Venice on a ‘work’ excursion which is beautifully shown in the film. I must say this would have been appreciated in the book. The scenes exhibit how the escape allows their relationship to flourish and have freedom for the first time.
As the story continues more and more breadcrumbs drop. Marion begins to see signs of Toms’ absence in their marriage, she looks for clues and realises what is going on. She confided in her friends and the views held in 1950s’ Britain are far from the acceptance of gay and queer love causing to take matters into her own hands.
Another key difference between book and film looks at how Marion is characterised. In the book, there are reams and reams of detail discussing her life as a teenager, her progression to become a teacher and her friendships.
In particular, she nurtures a friendship with fellow teacher, Julia who she confides in during the first inklings that her marriage may break down. Marion is faced with Julias’ own confession that she is also gay. This causes Marion to shut Julia out, in a key turn of events and causes her to report Patrick to the police.
Understandably, the film directed by Michael Grandage, has a lot less time to pack in everything a novel might be able to. However, I think certain creative decisions were prioritised such as shots of scenic walks and too many references to the present situation which caused other elements to be forgotten about.
For example, more emphasis on Marion’s character would allow us to understand the difficulty but also her selfishness towards the relationship.
Both mediums of this story are elegant and explored a tale that sometimes goes untold. The setting and atmosphere helped bring the story to life. But I must say the book is always better than the film…