Graham: You’re gonna get yourself into all sorts of trouble
if you stay down here
 |
| Director: Shane Meadows (2008) |
After the stunning ‘This is England’ and
the disturbing yet entertaining ‘Dead Man’s Shoes’, I was hankering for more of
Shane Meadows films. Possessing a reputation of being both underrated and well
known in his native Britain, Meadows is a director known for stories involving
children, growing up and being set in the midlands. In many ways Somers Town
continues this tradition, yet for the first time, the Midlands are no longer
the setting, and our story takes place in the hustle and bustle of London.
Much like This is England, Meadows once
again casts Thomas Turgoose as the main character Tomo. Fresh off the train
from what can be interpreted as a broken home in Yorkshire; he sees London as a
city for change, and with only the bag on his back looks to start a new life.
The rough and tumble of the capital is hard on him, and when things seem their
lowest he encounters Marek (Piotr Jagiello) a polish boy of similar age. Soon
their friendship blossoms as they vie for the love of Maria (Elisa Lazowski), a
local cafe waitress.
What adds to the development of the duos
friendship is Meadows choice to let the camera roll, allowing both Turgoose and
Jagiello to show there bond in a naturalistic fashion. Instead of this
initially awkward friendship being stiff and unsatisfying, we get additional
development through ad libbed shots that are melded into existing scenes. While
this gives a rather rough, amateur feel to the finished project, the results
are more than worth the lack of polish.
Yet while this friendship is strong, it
doesn’t possess enough momentum to fulfil its role at the core of the film.
While they bicker over who loves Maria more most of the time, the plot is exceedingly
thin on the ground and not even the plot arc involving Marek’s father (Ireneusz
Czop) and his harsh unloving nature can salvage proceedings. In fact, for the
amount of screentime this takes up, the father and son element is relatively
throwaway beyond its use to show Marek's near constant loneliness. The result
is a film that almost aimlessly wanders for its 71 minute running time; Meadows
concern at portraying these 2 lonely teenagers outstrips the need for cohesion
in his eyes. Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t necessarily a bad decision, but
anyone viewing Somers Town hoping to be struck by the stark bite of Dead Man’s
Shoes or This is England will walk away from the film practically unscathed.
What helps raise the sense of isolation was
the choice to shoot the film in old school black and white. This limited use of
colour fits the location of Somers Town well, the drab art style and blocky,
constrained apartment that Marek resides in makes it feel like shooting them in
colour would be a crime. Only in the final scene does Meadows move away from
the lack of colour, a delightful segment that shouldn’t be spoiled until it’s
seen. The change of stock has some significance in one wishes to find it, both
in a positive and negative fashion.
Somers Town isn’t Meadows best work. It’s
short, scrappy and has far too many montages when taking into account its
minute length. Yet the characters and the situations that they find themselves
in are a surreal blend of optimism and melancholy in both their present state
and potential future predicaments. This meaning the gently simmers throughout
the film makes Somers Town a worthwhile, if unspectacular effort.
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