Perhaps wrongly marketed as a 'groundbreaking' film - due to the number of deaf, as well as hearing actors - this really should appeal to anyone. There are some subtitles, but I didn't find this to be a problem. If it had simply been released as a mainstream movie I doubt the 'deaf' factor would come into it. Anyway, I enjoyed it. There are two very well-known British actors - Susan Lynch & Neil Stuke - both excellent. Lynch is much under-rated in my book. Joseph Mawle gives an outstanding performance in the lead role as the accused deaf lodger.
The story is interesting without being over-complex, and the rapport between the characters is good. There's a real sense of the desperation that must be felt when accused of a crime by a society that seems to make little effort to understand you. How to make yourself heard? I think the 'whodunnit' factor is a little too transparent for hardened mystery buffs, but it manages to capture nicely the rather bleak, seedy British urban lifestyle. Not exactly gritty, but still realistic.
I don't think this is a cinema-release movie, but if you get a chance to see it, give it a go. You may be pleasantly surprised.
