pomeroy-nick

Northern Soul is back, it's being pumped into bars and clubs with rising regularity. Understandably with every resurrected craze, it had been converted into a film last year. The story is bland at best, with a predictable and formulaic path. The saving grace is a good performance by Martin Compston and the great soundtrack.

Soulboy is branded as a comedy drama, the comedy it speaks of is provided by various cheap jokes throughout, nothing showing real wit or craftsmanship. Cringe worthy dialogue and scenes abound with fairly wooden character acting providing the backdrop for see through storytelling.

Joe, as the likely lad, gets mixed up in drugs and the plot takes a dark turn. As it's a light hearted drama, no real harm comes of the actions. I don't want to bash the director and producers of the film as it is brilliantly shot, the dance scenes are a real treat to watch (except for the painful dance off) and everything is set up perfectly for the 70's from the platforms to the flares and the god awful red tank top. Regarding the dance off, maybe I'm wrong, but it seems to me that in Wigan in the 70's it would've been a fight not a dance. The film didn't need that scene but obviously someone had the bright idea of a big Hollywood style ending. This isn't what the audience wanted from a Northern Soul tribute.

Despite all of the problems with this film, it is enjoyable, mainly because of the music, some of which I've now added to my collection. If you enjoy Northern Soul then this film will get you yearning for the Casino Club, if you don't then there isn't a great deal else to draw you in as the script and predictability make it a no brainer of a watch. Without the music, this is a poor man's An Education.

Mr. Nobody, a film about memories, origins and relationships. Mr Nobody arises from slumber in a hospital with a tattooed doctor enquiring about the life of the last surviving mortal on Earth. Little is explained about this future civilisation except that a medical breakthrough has emerged to give humans everlasting life.

Mr Nobody is held in the hospital and it is planned that his death is to be broadcast to the world; after all he is a mortal in an immortal world. It's a big deal. The majority of the film is dedicated to looking back at this mysterious gentleman's past. We meet him before he was born where unborn children are touched by angels. These unborn children choose their own parents, an interesting concept on creation.

The young protagonist has an unusual gift; he can see parts of the future. Those around him pass this off as déjà vu but he knows otherwise, predicting a car crash and various other events. The cinematography is artistically done, with a human approach, using close ups of faces whenever possible. The world is wonderfully colourful with eccentric characters and intense personal connections.

Mr Nobody is remarkably philosophical, bringing up questions of existence, consequence, time, love and choices to name a few. This is what I got from the Jaco Van Dormael drama, a sense that we should question everything while accepting what comes as fate. A lot of the choices Jared Leto's Mr Nobody makes are cinematographically depicted in colours; the film progresses seeing three loves in his life, all childhood acquaintances which are assigned a different colour almost without fail throughout.

Anybody that has read my other reviews knows I love a good soundtrack. Mr Nobody has an excellent score, and any film with "Where Is My Mind" and "Everyday" gets the thumbs up.

I advise everybody to watch Mr Nobody at some point in their life, there is a lot to take in but this is special. It is laugh out loud funny at times, philosophical without getting bogged down in metaphysics and is masterfully written. Don't miss out.

Dead pan humour is the order of the day with Submarine. Understated lines such as "my mum gave a hand job to a mystic" could go unnoticed by an inattentive audience; every exchange has a hidden reward if picked up on. There are of course obvious jokes throughout, however the true comedy is found in Oliver Tate's voice over and interactions.

Casting Craig Roberts as Oliver Tate was a masterstroke and much of the film's success is based on his performance. The imaginative and peculiar schoolboy analyses everything, often conjuring up fictional events which parody mainstream movies. In one such hypothetical situation he sees Jordana (Yasmin Paige) by the shore and runs to her, meanwhile his narration explains that it isn't her standing there, a stranger turns around.

Submarine is a simple coming of age story, without the solid plot of the British film veterans. A little slow paced on occasion, it could have done with an extra thread of story. In essence the narrative follows two strands, the relationship between Oliver and Jordana and between Oliver and his family. Trying to date Jordana and reignite the spark between his parents isn't a small task, not that that fazes Oliver.

Submarine is devilishly funny, a true gem and I hope it doesn't stay under the radar of most cinema goers for much longer.