Frances (Aud Mason-Hyde) is getting a light grilling from is getting a light grilling from her grandfather, Jim. John Lithgow plays the titular character in Sophie Hyde’s new film Jimpa, baffled by Frances’ sexual preferences. This is probably not what Frances had in mind for conversation after flying from Australia to Amsterdam to see him. Not just to meet him but to live with him despite their filmmaker mother Hannah’s (Olivia Colman) reluctance. And in fairness to Jimpa, now an Amsterdam resident, he’s not just one’s typical ignorant boomer grandfather. He’s also a gay HIV positive activist who fought for the rights of fellow gay men and women. Besides, Frances isn’t just there to live with him but to follow his footsteps, discovering their sexuality. But that discovery may prove more difficult because of Jimpa’s health, already having a stroke three years prior.

Sophie Hyde’s film is about a lot of things, mostly about a family moving towards a common understanding. I didn’t write a lot about Hannah but she’s a crucial figure within Frances and Jimpa’s ‘conflict’. Guiding her actions is letting Jimpa show his true colours to Frances to dissuade their move to Amsterdam. Jimpa, then, captures Frances calling out Hannah’s diminutive approach and perspective, even towards standing up for her child. In a way, that perspective guides the film itself, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing in general. A film like this avoiding conflicts makes it less exciting, sure, but I like its diversions, choosing joy for its characters. Frances gets out of Jimpa’s ignorance and Hannah’s passive nature through a lovely phone call. That call comes from Isa (Zoë Love Smith) in what leads to the film’s climactic romantic scene.

Jimpa shows that being a queer person and / or an ally has a land mine’s share of difficulties, and things don’t get easier even if one has allies within the family, as Frances thankfully does. Sometimes, it’s hard to rely on one’s allies within the family because they don’t do the necessary work. That’s true with Hannah with her wait and see approach, even as Jimpa’s health gets impossibly worse post-stroke. Hyde’s choice to make Hannah both passive and a tertiary character is a choice for obvious reasons. Hannah is obviously doubling as Hyde’s stand-in in a cinematic love letter (Mason-Hyde is Hyde’s real life daughter). Maybe this is a cinematic way of beating oneself up or making the film’s other characters shine. All three leads do commendable work in a film where characters eventually empathize with each other.

Jimpa is available in select Canadian theatres.