Rating: 3.5/5
What an opening! Another piece of media reminding me how fucked Glasgow is
Tonally, it reminds me a lot of Kes, the way it focuses on the cruelty of childhood, albeit with a bleaker thread running throughout and no sense of relief
I have a hard time with social realism that feels brutal for the sake of it, which this does a few times, but it doesn’t devolve into full “Kids” edge lord territory
The scene with the mice on the moon is bittersweet but feels out of place compared to the other moments with James’ imagination. I know it’s intentional, but it’s not a choice that works for me. Then again, it will probably be the scene that sticks with me the longest
Ultimately what makes this work is how personal the story is. For Lynn Ramsay’s first feature, the movie feels relatively cohesive. I don’t love it as much as her other films I’ve seen, but its good
www.glasgowlive.co.uk/news/history/1975-glasgow-dustmen-strikes-rats-17323843