Toby Jones plays Carl, an ex-convict who meets a woman online around the same time as his mother visits. The story is told out of episodic order, and includes brief flashbacks to memories of Carl's father and how he came by the titular kaleidoscope. There are some inspired shots, comparing a monolithic tower block and a three-sided staircase to the view through the toy. There are a few short scenes away from Carl's flat. There are almost incidental mentions of Carl's plan to have his own gardening business that add nothing to the plot, maybe even distract from it. There is a shabby ending, which destroys any tension or suspense the story had. Wonderful to look at but as hollow and unfilling as a chocolate egg.
