For better and for worse, much of our understanding about disabilities have come from cinema. Of course, there are the sensationalised Blockbusters that have probably done more harm than good in defying stereotypes. Think 1970’s smash hits like Rainman or One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, which have both contributed to negative stereotypes about people with neurodivergence or mental health illnesses.
More recently, films like Oscar award-winner CODA and Netflix documentary Crip Camp have been celebrated for their power to raise awareness about disability through authentic and sensitive representations. Kirk Jones’s latest film, I Swear, will definitely achieve a similar feat.
I Swear is a 2025 Scottish biopic that follows the true story of John Davidson (Scott Ellis Watson and Robert Aramayo). Good looking, sporty and smart, John is the pride of his small Scottish town. His parents and sisters dote on him, as do his gaggle of equally popular school friends and soccer coach. Watson, who plays the young Davidson, excels in his role as the carefree high schooler. Whether running through open marshland or jumping over rocks near the river, his energy and enthusiasm for life are visceral, leaping out from the screen so that the audience feel right there with him.
John (Robert Aramayo) and Dottie (Maxine Peake) in 2025 Scottish biopic I Swear.
This all changes, though, when John begins experiencing the first signs of Tourette’s Syndrome. His sudden inability to control his body and speech leave him petrified and confused, emotions that starkly contrast the sense of freedom within the opening sequence.
Tourette’s Syndrome is a neurological condition that causes a person to make involuntary movements or sounds called tics. In the 1980’s, when Davidson was diagnosed, the condition was practically unheard of in the community. Those living with Tourette’s faced extreme misunderstanding and discrimination.
Davidson is no stranger to this kind of discrimination. At school, he is beaten by the headmaster almost every day for his involuntary swearing. His friends abandon him and call him names, while his soccer coach drops him from the team after he displays motor tics on the field.
But perhaps more saddening is the hurtful discrimination Davidson experiences from his own family. In one particularly painful scene, Davidson’s mother (a particularly uptight Shirley Henderson) reaches breaking point at the dinner table after Davidson experiences a bout of tics that cause him to spit his dinner across the room. Despite his pleas that he can’t help his tics, his mother sends him to eat alone in a separate room on the floor, a rule she enforces for the remainder of his childhood. What is so harrowing about this scene is the way it captures Davidson’s extreme alienation, even from those who are meant to nurture him.
But Davidson’s life takes a drastic turn when he meets the extravagant and eternally compassionate Dottie (Maxine Peake). Dottie, who worked as a mental health nurse, is the first person in his life that understands his condition. Davidson soon moves in with Dottie, who provides a safe space for him to be himself, swearing and all. Her only house rule? No apologising for something you can’t help!
Through Dottie’s kindness, Davidson slowly unlearns the ableist ideas that he has internalised. Buoyed by her maxim that it’s not Tourette’s that’s the problem, but the lack of public awareness, Davidson gets his first job at the local community centre with the caretaker Tommy (Peter Mullan).
Tommy is another character who helps Davidson fight back against the stigma that has oppressed him for so long. The chemistry between Robert Aramayo and Mullan is authentic and humorous, fuelled by the sheer outrageousness of Davidson’s vocal tics which make even the most mundane tasks like stacking chairs or mopping floors entertaining. What is so powerful about this onscreen friendship is the way it humanises Tourette’s Syndrome. No longer do we see it as a tragedy in Davidson’s life, but an invaluable part of his personality and identity.
While his journey is not without its bumps – individual and institutional misunderstanding about Tourette’s leaves Davidson vulnerable to violence and unjust police arrests – he is able to fight back against the stigma that has oppressed him for so long by leaning on those that love him. Through his unwavering determination to bring more awareness and acceptance to Tourette’s in his own small community, he manages to touch the lives of thousands of similarly affected people, as well as their families.
I Swear is an uplifting story of an accidental activist that provides audiences with an authentic insight into what it means to live with Tourette’s Syndrome. Emotional as it is educational, the film is a must-see at this year’s British Film Festival, reminding us that accepting and celebrating difference is central to real empowerment.
I Swear will show at Palace Cinemas from 8 November to 7 December as part of the 2025 British Film Festival.
