Directed by Morgan Martini and written by Rolando Zee, Never Too Old is a life affirming testament to love. Jesse (Rolando Zee) and Florio (Gregory Niebel) have been together for over 45 years, but Jesse has been firmly against marriage his whole life. There are, of course, many ways to show love for, and commitment to, another person. Marrying the person you love hasn’t always been possible for members of the LGBT community. In the UK, same sex marriage came into effect in 2014 and in the US, the Supreme Court legalised same sex marriage in all 50 states in 2015. The battle for equal rights has been a long one, and continues to this day. For some people, participating in an institution that they have been systematically excluded from isn’t appealing, and therefore continue to show love and commitment to a partner in other ways. There is no right or wrong way to love.
Whatever Jesse’s reasons were for not wanting to marry, one day in the later stages of his life he changes his mind. Despite some initial confusion, Florio graciously accepts him and the pair are to be married. At the ceremony, their love emanates like a beacon for all their friends and family to see. But more importantly still, we see that beacon of love behind closed doors. The small moments shared between lovers; the acts of care, the laughter, the struggles surmounted with another by your side. With Florio’s health failing, the struggles are both physical and emotional. Jesse is as loving and attentive as ever, only regretting the fact they didn’t get married years ago. But, as Florio points out, the love preceding their marriage was just as valuable as after.
Throughout the whole film, I found it difficult to stop smiling. Rolando Zee and Gregory Niebel have tremendous on screen chemistry. Even the moments of sadness are tinged with the loving humour the pair share. Together they have created a relationship that feels to have a rich and long standing history, despite the fact we only see them in their latter years. Zee and Niebel give us everything we could possibly need to know about Jesse and Florio in just 17 minutes of screen time. The choice of music greatly supports and adds to the narrative with William Succi composing the soundtrack. The film also features three songs from artist Don Castor which flow beautifully with the story.
A feel-good film reminding us that love not only has no gender, but also no age limit. Never Too Old captures an underrepresented age demographic in the LGBT community and shows us what true love really is all about.
Watch the trailer below.