Pride, in cinemas now, tells the story of a small group of gay and lesbian activists who raise money for striking miners in Thatcher’s 1984 Britain and in their solidarity with a Welsh coalmining village, develop unlikely life-changing friendships. The previews play up the comedy, which is there, but this is actually drama first and foremost. Indeed, it is an example of the power of well-made drama, as it balances the individual challenges of the characters (coming out, developing confidence, seeking love) against the bigger scale political conflict. The universal acclaim for the film reflects its accomplished filmmaking. Each character is complex and interesting. The tone is just right, managing to inspire and move, while knowing when to pull back and avoid seeming over-earnest. One thing which isn’t even exactly a criticism, but an observation: it recreates the eighties so well that it would be easy to miss the way the film brings the contemporary near consensus on sexuality to that period, and makes the characters on the wrong side of history seem merely mean or stupid.  Perhaps related to that, the process of growing acceptance and eventual embrace among the Welsh villagers for the homosexuals is a microcosm of the same process among broader society over the the period since the film. This is a film which will inspire and challenge while audiences laugh and cry.