This movie is (VERY loosely) based on Brendan Behan's memoir "Borstal Boy". Unfortunately, they took much of what was good about the memoir, and got rid of it.
I guess in a way it's understandable. The whole point of the book was the subtle changes going on in a boy's mind, and that's difficult to portray on screen. But the solution chosen by the filmmakers here (go for the cheap sentiment whenever possible as a substitute) didn't really work. The director tried so blatantly, so often, to force emotional moments that those same moments were robbed of their power.
Couple that with several moments/characters that were flat out unbelievable (most notably Dale, especially as the film went on), and I was left disappointed. The story of the real Brendan Behan is infinitely more interesting than the fiction made up out of whole cloth for the screen.
I guess in a way it's understandable. The whole point of the book was the subtle changes going on in a boy's mind, and that's difficult to portray on screen. But the solution chosen by the filmmakers here (go for the cheap sentiment whenever possible as a substitute) didn't really work. The director tried so blatantly, so often, to force emotional moments that those same moments were robbed of their power.
Couple that with several moments/characters that were flat out unbelievable (most notably Dale, especially as the film went on), and I was left disappointed. The story of the real Brendan Behan is infinitely more interesting than the fiction made up out of whole cloth for the screen.