This is a film that should appeal greatly to me . It's set against the background of a teenage boy growing up in a small insular town . This mirrors my own earlier life . " No one is allowed an opinion of their own " proclaims protagonist David and it's something I can bitterly relate to . Growing up in a small town is a painful experience especially for an existentialist who is an outsider . You're conditioned to be a nobody . Think of a combination of Lysenkoism and the antithesis of ambition . That's what life is like in a small town the world over . In short this should be a film that takes people in to themselves creating a strong and instant sense of empathy . Alas it;s something of a cinematic disaster
The problem lies entirely at the feet of director Terence Davies . He directs in a poetic style or at least attempts to but where as a poetic film by Terewnce Malik or Sam Mendes works here it spectacular fails . . What sinks the film is the unnatural framing where a character is smack bang in the middle of the screen facing the camera . A lot of critics complain that a director like Danny Boyle shoots , frames and edits films in a similar manner but at least he brings a sense of variety to his movies . Here however Davies relies on the exact same framing technique throughout the entire film which sinks it as a cinematic presentation and feels more like a filmed theater play
The problem lies entirely at the feet of director Terence Davies . He directs in a poetic style or at least attempts to but where as a poetic film by Terewnce Malik or Sam Mendes works here it spectacular fails . . What sinks the film is the unnatural framing where a character is smack bang in the middle of the screen facing the camera . A lot of critics complain that a director like Danny Boyle shoots , frames and edits films in a similar manner but at least he brings a sense of variety to his movies . Here however Davies relies on the exact same framing technique throughout the entire film which sinks it as a cinematic presentation and feels more like a filmed theater play