hopscotch credit: roads
sincere, genuine, and deep from the heart, roads is a masterpiece in sentiment. telling the tale of two young boys who cross paths in morocco and adventure on a road trip full of hash, happiness, and refugees finding home. all in all, it is a must watch, but the thing that pushes this movie to the beloved vault of twin worship is the (spoiler) 20+ second hug that gyllen (fionn whitehead) gives to william (stéphane bak).
before moving on, if you haven't seen the film yet - BEWARE scrolling further includes bigger SPOILERS than the one above. if you wish not to be spoiled of the fun, please watch the film first and/or read our review for it: click here THANKS :)
well, well. hopefully if you are reading these words, you have seen roads. if not....livin' on the edge, we see. anyways, at the end of this movie, gyllen and william have to (BIG SPOILER) say their goodbyes to one another, parting ways after brotherly-bonding within their time together. neither of them want to leave one another, but they know it's that moment. before william gets into the car, he goes over to give gyllen a hug. and, not letting go, gyllen says the fatal phrase
"NO, YOU HAVE TO HOLD IT FOR 20 SECONDS FOR THE ENDORPHINS TO KICK IN"
like....stab in the heart much!! these 15 words uttered amongst the sadness of the moment are the equivalent of the shorter 6 word sentence that is "I DON'T WANT YOU TO LEAVE"!! uniquely like the film, the phrase chosen hits deeper as it allows the follow-up countdown of these 20 seconds - the 20 seconds that the audience has to endure through, too. and if that wasn't tearful enough, the incredible actor that is fionn whitehead has an emotional voice crack on the number 10. and if that wasn't enough, the bittersweet score begins playing in the background, soundtracking the goodbye.
sorry, we're getting emotional....(clear throat)....this special moment in roads also plays hand in hand with the bond between gyllen and william. in essence, they never say goodbye. they let this moment say it for them. this hug holds them through the distance and gets them through their separation. and in a way, because of this, this isn't their goodbye. luckily, we know this more surely, because the filmmakers fortunately added in a phone call between them at the end, proving that they still have some sort of contact with one another. this hug and all its 20 seconds also serves more purpose to the film, because, instead of confessing everything that the other has meant to and done form them, the hug symbolizes and speaks as an emotional thank you. starting out as strangers on a road trip, it's crazy to think that at the end they have grown so close. and not a fake close. a real, deep-bonded close. you just want this hug to never end!!
in whole, this moment is hecka sad, but, of course, the twisted-little-twins love it. AND WE DO!! to us, it is emotional. it is one of a kind. it is golden. it is....perfect.