Director: Gage Oxley
Screenwriter: Gage Oxley
Starring: Jack Parr, Kaya Moore, Jim Bayes
Plot: A cautionary short film about the damage caused by rigid heteronormative expectations and toxic masculinity toward young men.
At first glance, the narrator’s voice in this short suggested a gentle, introspective take on contemporary LGBT+ life. What follows in the 25-minute drama, however, is far sharper: a compact, relentless exploration of how societal pressure and rigid masculinity can devastate a young man. This World We Live In moves with purpose and does not shy away from harsh truths, delivering a focused critique of the cultural forces that shame and silence vulnerable people.
The film centers on Joey, a university student who outwardly fits the expected mold: he plays sports with friends, enjoys nights out and spends time gaming. Beneath that veneer, though, Joey is locked in a painful internal struggle. He feels compelled to suppress his desires, emotions and identity to conform. Jack Parr’s performance gives this conflict a visceral face. His expressions—small shifts of humiliation, fear and resignation—carry the narrative when dialogue falls away. Parr’s portrayal makes it easy to read the torment underneath casual banter and bravado: the secrecy, the paranoia of being exposed, and the weight of self-judgment.
Director Gage Oxley emphasizes that scrutiny through camera choices that often position the lens like an observing bystander. That visual approach reinforces the film’s central metaphor: a society permanently watching and evaluating young people, enforcing standards they cannot meet without extreme personal cost. Sound and image work together, and the film’s technical design culminates in a tightly orchestrated emotional climax. In those final moments, audio blurs and tight framing create a suffocating, subjective perspective that aligns the audience with Joey’s panic and isolation.
The film’s plotting takes dramatic turns that may feel heightened, a common constraint in short-format storytelling where character arcs must accelerate. Some viewers might find the ending leans toward melodrama, but within the short’s compressed timeframe, those narrative leaps underline the urgency of its message. The story exposes how phrases like “no homo” and the pressures of hyper-masculine culture can instill shame, pushing young men into risky situations and, sometimes, into exploitative environments framed as escape. Oxley does not shy away from depicting that danger: the film asserts that men are also vulnerable to sexual exploitation and violence, and that rape culture harms people of all genders.
As a writer, Oxley occasionally over-explains. Joey’s narration sometimes tells the audience what the images already show, and that choice reduces opportunities for supporting actors to emerge more fully. Kaya Moore, for example, brings a lively charm that could have been explored further if the script relied more on visual storytelling and dialogue rather than internal monologue. Still, the film’s strengths—its focused direction, confident framing and a central performance that anchors the piece—compensate for those moments of redundancy.
The production benefits from a distinct Northern British voice in its dialogue and setting, lending authenticity and cultural specificity. That regional identity makes the film feel personal and grounded, a strength in independent cinema. More importantly, the film succeeds as a wake-up call. It challenges complacent assumptions that LGBT+ issues are resolved by highlighting ongoing prejudice and the real harm of entrenched gender norms. The narrative invites viewers to confront how little compassion and understanding can cost a life, and it urges societies to rethink how they define masculinity.
Overall, This World We Live In is not an easy watch, but it is a necessary one. It balances raw emotion with deliberate craft, and Jack Parr’s portrayal gives the film its emotional center. While occasionally reliant on familiar short-film conventions, the project is brave in its critique and effective as advocacy. It makes a clear, urgent plea: to recognize the danger of shame, to extend compassion, and to listen to people whose struggles are too often hidden.
Score: 14/24
To mark the 50th anniversary of the decriminalisation of homosexuality in the UK, Gage Oxley wrote and directed a series of three short films titled ODYSSEY to raise awareness and challenge stigma within the LGBT+ community. This World We Live In is the first in that series, with a preview release on March 11, 2017.