Junkhearts

This was an unexpected treat, a bunch of us were shown this movie. as part of a literature group. We are a mixed bag of folk, who have certainly seen our fair share of the kind of life experience on show here in this movie. we were told nothing of this film, but most of us agreed it was as authentic a depiction of addiction, alcoholism, crime, homelessness and p.t.s.d. (post traumatic stress disorder) as any other, in any movie ever. yeah it was ugly in places, but the beauty in i felt lay in the way that even these supposedly lowlife characters, could find some kind of dignity and redemption in their lives. I found a film full of honesty, humour and hope. a real treat indeed, the fact that the dirtector tinge came along to our humble group for the showing and a post screening discussion, also showed how the filmmaker's really cared about their creation and the audience.

Junkhearts is a gritty film set in London that starts promisingly but gets derailed due to poor execution and a muddled and derivative screenplay.

Frank (Eddie Marsan) is a reclusive ex-soldier, drunk and suffering from post traumatic stress as he is haunted by his past. He takes in a young homeless girl Lynette (Candese Reid) when she is having a spot of bother outside an off licence and she stays at his shabby flat.

At first they strike up a tentative friendship but then her boyfriend Danny turns up and also moves into the flat before long there is sex, drugs, alcohol and partying and Frank is like a prisoner in his own flat and it looks like Lynette has used him.

I just wanted Frank to knock Danny's lights out but what we get is a dreary melodrama which stems into a cliché ridden thinly plotted mess.

As a former trauma consultant, I can safely claim that Eddie Marsan's character draws from a credible and real portrayal of those who have experienced trauma in combat situations and war-zones. It is this authenticity that grounds Marsan's tremendous performance. Tinge Krishnan captures the mood, style and pace well to ensure the emotionality of the piece infuses into the viewer's awareness at just the right pitch, so we share the journey of the characters. Tom Sturridge should also take credit for his strong performance. Hats off to Simon Frank for writing an excellent script on a difficult subject, that doesn't exploit, sensationalise or stereotype. This is a film that will stay with you. And right it should.

Quite well made on a low budget; I did like the use of visual effects though, focus, the use of close-ups and lighting mostly, but quite effective. The performances were all pretty good; I found Eddie Marsan quite believable as Frank and Tom Sturridge was suitably intimidating as Danny. Newcomer Candese Reid as pretty good as Lynette although I'd like to see more of her work before I make a judgement on this performance. Finally there's Romola Garai who plays Christine, another character, more of her in a moment, she was pretty good also.

An interesting film with two parallel story lines; one involving Frank and Lynette and the other involving a well-heeled woman called Christine. She is a single mother with a young daughter; she's seeing a married man and her mother is taken ill. The thing is we don't see anything more about Christine until quite near the end of the film. I found myself wondering just what was the point of showing us those little fragments of her and then nothing more for about and hour (or so it seemed). But back to Frank; I guess I was hoping for a film along the lines of the rather excellent 'Harry Brown', but sadly not to be. Although there are parallels, this one doesn't take the same course and (I felt) it suffered because of it. It does have some good points though but be prepared to be a tad disappointed by the end.

SteelMonster's verdict: RECOMMENDED (Just)

My score: 6.0/10

You can find an expanded version of this review on my blog: Thoughts of a SteelMonster.

Please, please ignore any negative comments.

I have just had the privilege of watching this film with a group of recovering addicts(drugs,alcohol and of all age groups, most of them at one time or the other had lived on the streets).

Everyone of them testified to the realism of the movie, they all recognised aspects of themselves in the film and were moved by how close the director came to understanding their world.

The cast are superb,the small spots of humour are handled gently.

The whole piece is produced with great care and thought. I will undoubtedly watch it again