Matt Shea
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Morgan Bell
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David O'Connell
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Nowhere Boy
December 31st 2009 02:21
It may have come as a surprise to many that the debut feature film from conceptual artist turned director Sam Taylor-Wood turned out to be so conventional, but then many a salty cynic would raise an eyebrow that it turned out to be any good at all.
In fact, Nowhere Boy is almost conventional to a fault – not that this is necessarily a bad thing. So many smaller films try to make up for their lack of budget or high-concept by flipping pancakes with the narrative or feeding the D.O.P. amphetamines. In that respect, Nowhere Boy is almost refreshing in its dedication to telling a simple tale simply, although the pragmatism can sometimes leave things seeming more Channel 4 than Film4.
John Lennon is the subject of Matt Greenhalgh and Julia Baird’s screenplay, but it’s not the Lennon of chesterfield suits or FBI watchlists. Rather, Nowhere Boy looks at the teenage years of John Lennon in mid-1950s, when he was still a struggling school student, keen amateur musician and self-styled iconoclast.
Taking the lead role is Aaron Johnson, and he’s the film’s first slight misstep. Johnson is proficient, but seems a degree too physical to be playing Lennon, and his halting attempt at a Northern accent paints him as something of a slurring, bovver boy bruiser.
Thankfully, the narrative is carefully unspooled by Greenhalgh and Baird, their story efficiently gathering momentum as the teenage John’s much-loved uncle and guardian, George (David Threlfall) dies, leaving him in the sole care of his prim and protective aunt, Mimi (Kristin Scott Thomas). George’s death has the unforeseen effect of reintroducing John to his estranged mother (and Mimi’s sister), Julia (Anne-Marie Duff), the two soon clamouring to rebuild their long dormant relationship.
Julia turns out to be a flighty but flighty energetic sort, and she quickly introduces her son to the wonders of rock music, a spark being lit within the emotionally torn teenager. Mimi takes exception to this new influence in John’s life, and as the tensions grow between the two sisters some truths about the young Lennon’s early childhood begin to bob to the surface.
It’s solidly written stuff, the emotional beats being clear for Johnson to hit, lending his take on Lennon some real colour even when it would be easy for the audience to loathe the black-and-white sarcastic bully he’s sometimes in danger of becoming.
The young thesp benefits from a first-class supporting cast too. Scott Thomas is as accurate as always in her role of Mimi, while the up-and-coming Duff totally sells the awkward and undulating Julia. Elsewhere, Thomas Brodie Sangster initially seems miscast as a pipsqueak Paul McCartney, but the young actor comes to effectively transmit the gentle steeliness of Lennon’s future writing partner, while David Morrisey is in danger of nicking off with the entire picture during his brief scenes as Julia’s quietly patient boyfriend.
And the film looks as good as its appealing cast, with the typically fastidious British approach to production design shining within the thoughtful frames of gun cinematographer, Seamus McGarvey. The only moments that let Nowhere Boy down are the overwrought and B-television murder mystery stylings of Lennon’s flashbacks to his early childhood. They’re strangely overwrought and also out of place within the visual context of the rest of the film.
Sam Taylor-Wood may be the marquis name attached to this production, but ultimately it hardly feels like her film. This is a picture notable for its pragmatism and reliant on a rock-solid screenplay. If you’re looking for a story about the Beatles, you’d be best to do so elsewhere (most probably 1994’s Backbeat), the film ending when the young Lennon, McCartney and Harrison leave for Hamburg.
But if you’re after a little more context on what shaped the life of John Lennon, Nowhere Boy is an enjoyable place to start. The film’s central purpose is to deliver an efficiently packaged drama, but it also quietly fills in the background on one of the 20th century’s brightest personalities, adding some shade to the extraordinary artistry that was soon to come.
I say: A conventional but engaging look at the early life of John Lennon.
See it for: John Lennon punching Paul McCartney in the face!
*This image is from Maple Pictures
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