Directed by: Julius Ševčík
Written by: Andrew Shaw (based on the novel The Glass Room by Simon Mawer)
Cast: Hanna Alström, Carice van Houten, Claes Bang, Roland Møller, Alexandra Borbély
Genre: Period Drama / Romance / Queer Cinema
Runtime: 104 minutes
💬 Plot Overview
Set against the backdrop of Czechoslovakia across three turbulent decades, the film centers on Liesel Landauer (Hanna Alström) and her wealthy Jewish husband Viktor (Claes Bang), who commission a visionary modernist villa in Brno designed by architect Rainer von Abt. Within its iconic translucent glass walls, a quiet, intense emotional bond deepens between Liesel and her vibrant best friend, Hana (Carice van Houten). As political upheaval, Nazi occupation, and Soviet control tear their lives and country apart, the villa stands as a sanctuary where their unspoken desire, hidden passions, and lingering connection endure through years of exile, betrayal, and survival.
🎨 Style & Direction
Architectural & Visual Splendor: Director Julius Ševčík turns the modernist Tugendhat-inspired villa into a living character, using clean lines, reflective glass, and luminous lighting to mirror the characters' desire for emotional transparency and freedom.
Complex, Lyrical Performances: Carice van Houten and Hanna Alström deliver magnetic performances, capturing a subtle, long-burning romantic chemistry that survives decades of separation and historical trauma.
Sweeping European Period Scope: Ševčík balances the grandeur of a sweeping historical epic with an intimate, secret queer romance, contrasting the brutal advance of 20th-century history against the fragile beauty of personal truth.
💬 QueerFilmHub Perspective
“The Affair is a visually stunning, emotionally haunting period drama—where modernist architecture becomes a refuge for a quiet, lifelong queer love affair amid the chaos of history.”
