|
|
| Hippy's Happy Film Review | |
| Orphans | |
|
|
|
Another gutsy British film, deserving of the awards and accolades it has received at film festivals internationally and the praise heaped upon its writer-director, Paul Mullan, for his debut offering.
Despite Channel Four's backing, it is, unfortunately, destined to be one of
those films which is going to be hard pushed to burst through onto mainstream
screens. Having never even noticed its release in the UK, in early 1999, I saw it as a
retrospective offering whilst Star Wars - Episode 1
played all around; now if only George Lucas could have made a film this good
with all his money ... Atmospherically set in Glasgow, we follow the fortunes of the remaining family
members as they cope in the aftermath of their Ma's death.
Powerful acting combines with an incisive vision of street and home life, as the
three brothers and their, mentally and physically disabled, sister prepare for
the funeral, to produce a vision of violence, heady emotion and, at times,
surreality. The humour is black, cutting and disturbing. The masturbation scene, like the,
"She ain't heavy; she's my mother", scene later, are incredibly
funny whilst underwritten with a sincere depth of sympathy for all characters
involved; to laugh or to cry ? The emotions of grief tied down with the absurdity of the moment are realistically
enacted, as anyone who has attended a wake or funeral well knows.
Waking Ned showed one part of the equation,
Orphans shows another, less relaxed and less sentimental part.
The film embraces a wide spectrum of imagery; from hard violence and the tough
reality of the street to the inane ways of everyday folk.
The morals are all there; the spontaneity and premediation of violence, the
difficulties of doing the right thing, the coming to terms with life as it moves
on, the absurdity of the things which surround us and the need to sometimes,
stop, think, walk or even run away. Cause and consequence is exposed and left
for us to ponder upon. "Having naked emotion", best summarises this film. Skilfully played, it
had a ring of This Year's Love to it, gritty reality and
how we fit into it, without however, leaving the depressive effects behind.
That the violence, and violent intentions could be said to be stereotypical of
Glasgow life is perhaps the only complaint that can be levied against the film.
But this violence, which isn't hidden behind some false facade of make believe,
gives the film an air of authenticity and credibility.
And, whilst it didn't pull its punches, it pulled its cast of characters and
its message above the violence which undoubtedly exists.
Whilst funerals are usually portrayed as solemn affairs of quiet contemplation;
the truth is often far from that. Irish Catholics, in particular, and other groups across the world, are well renowned
for their jovial wakes where solemnity is often rejected in favour of a
celebration of the life of the dear departed.
When viewed from an aspect of staid respect, the affair can seem rather macabre
if not downright offensive, however, even the most respectful celebrations can
be marred by humour and inappropriate incidents ...
Whilst in tearful reflection, during the cremation of a friend killed as a result
of a motorcycle accident, it did not go unnoticed that, as the coffin was taken
into the furnace, outside, the council refuse collectors rolled up in their
van and emptied a collection of refuse bins into their bin wagon and
nonchantly drove off. The unexpectedness of the situation, the truth of finality, dust to dust,
ashes to ashes, that we live such a brief life and are then gone, taken
away by The Dustmen of Hades, could not have been imprinted harder upon
my mind in any other way. That incident has always remained in my recollections of events past. It has
always amused me, yet it is with respect and genuine feeling I remember the
passing away of a friend and it opened my eyes to the beauty of life itself
and explained to me a concept of spiritality continuance more than any words
ever could. Life and death make for a very rich tapestry of emotion and events.
Orphans captures that aspect well.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| Superlative |
|
The Happy Hippy's ratings for the films reviewed here are all based upon
the Happy Hippy's enjoyment of the particular film and are entirely subjective,
and given from a British perspective. The Happy Hippy has a high tolerance to, what some might call, obscene language, violence and sexual activity ( except where gratuitous ) which may be offensive to other viewers. | |
| Excellent |
| ||
| Very Good |
| ||
| Good |
| ||
| Reasonable |
| ||
| Poor |
| ||
| Dire |
|
|
First published sometime before Tuesday the 7th of December, 1999
Last upload was on Tuesday the 10th of August, 2004 at 23:00:29 |
