Having You

Jack Turner (Andrew Buchan ) finally proposes to the long time girlfriend. But out of the blue, a hook-up from months ago turns up on his door step. Anna ( Anna Friel ) has a seven year old. And wants to know if it's Jack's kid. Of course, the right thing to do is immediately tell the new fiancee Camilla, but will he? Is Phoenix really his kid? Of course, he doesn't tell the fiancee about his situation, and it snowballs into bigger trouble. Like we all knew it would. Written and directed by british director Sam Hoare. His first ful length film, having directed two shorts before this. Here's a secret.... Romola Garai (Camilla) is married to the director. Good film. Cute. Good story, good acting. And a cute little song at the very end...not sure of the title. Cute Little One? Richard Thomas FInn? The plot of the film sure sounds like someone's personal experience. Good stuff.

Good actors immersed in their characters carrying us along their emotional journey. No heroes - real people are imperfect! No villains, although an occasional unlikable character.

In a time where so many films rely on special effects and extreme plot twists and turns, it's lovely to just settle into a film that will pull you in emotionally. Yes, it moves slowly, but it moves you, makes you identify with and empathize with these less than perfect people.

Jack's flaws are prominently displayed and yet we find ourselves sympathizing with him, understanding the choices he makes even if they are wrong, rooting for him to find his way.

After nine years, Jack (Andrew Buchan), proposes to his infertile girlfriend Camille (Romola Garai), whilst working in a seemingly poor job fixing old arcade machines with best (and possibly only) friend and boss Paul (Steven Cree), with his chess loving father Peter (Philip Davies) pressuring him to get a real job in order to fully support her. Complications, however, begin to arrive when Anna (Anna Friel) an old one night stand from years back, turns up at his doorstep with her seven year old son Phoenix (Issac Andrews) claiming that he just may be the father.

The most admirable thing about Having You is the character development and the writer's ability to keep them grounded and realistic, so that we care about them enough and grow invested in them. It's a tale of human nature and responsibility, and we follow Jack on his journey of coming to terms with the mistakes he has made and facing them like a true adult, responsibly and maturely; not to mention dealing with a shut down and difficult relationship with his father, the growing struggles of keeping his family a secret from the completely clueless Camille, and old habits rearing their ugly heads back into the picture as Jack struggles with the troubling hand he has been dealt.

A real plus in the matter is Steven Cree's witty and often hilarious portrayal of the easy-going boss (who acts more like a teenager trapped in a man's body), who really gives the film that comic relief in the occasional moments in which he shares screen time.

Towards the last half hour, the film takes a dramatic change in direction that does its job exceptionally well by building up the emotions and tension before delivering a powerful and heartbreaking finale that really hits the audience hard. Unfortunately, it is such a film that will go without any real recognition, and this is a real shame due to it's impressive quality and well crafted storytelling.

My Verdict: Emotional, character driven and grounded, Having You is one of those rare gems that sticks with you long after it's over.

(28%) A sweet, perfectly acceptable, yet hugely unremarkable family based drama with a real flavour of a TV movie of the week about it. Nothing here really feels, low budget or not, like an actual feature film. This if anything is nothing more than a two part drama series that you'd expect to see at nine o'clock on ITV with its solid; yet nothing special cast of bit part actors, routine direction, and predictable plot. Despite the fact that this belongs on the small screen there's enough here to keep itself going, and the ending will tug at even the most cold of heart, but there's nothing here anyone needs to see.

Beautiful movie. Understated acting, but very expressive - the entire cast. Wonderful sound track. Lighting and sound extremely well done. (My hearing is not great and frequently small-budget movies, especially from the UK are marked by muffled dialogue.)

The story was moving without a wasted scene. In fact, a few of the scenes were so well done, and unveiled the interior life of the character so well, as to rank with the best I've watched in recent memory.

The ending was perhaps my least favorite part of the movie. It kept in tone with the rest, so it was of a piece. But it was unoriginal.

Last, both in the spots where the movie reached for laughs - and a few places where quirky acting hit me unexpectedly, I burst out laughing, which is rare for me. So many movies in this genre are just somber, or unable to hit the right comedic note - just the opposite here.

All told an extremely enjoyable film experience of the first order!