Dir. Peter
Howitt ,UK, 2007, 110 mins
Cast: Peter Howitt, Saffron Burrows, Sean Pertwee
Review by Carol Allen
Since his debut film as writer/director, "Sliding
Doors", Howitt has been directing other people's scripts,
mainly in America. Now he returns to his homeland and to
material, which he has written himself. Howitt, who is
also an actor, best known for his role as Joey Boswell
in television's "Bread" back in the eighties,
also takes the leading role in this, which may lead some
people to think this film is a mere ego trip. That would
however be unfair. Howitt and producer Richard Johns have
laboured for many years to get this difficult material,
which is based on a semi autobiographical novel by Stuart
Browne, to the screen and Howitt considered many other
leading actors before deciding to take the role himself.
Noah Arkwright (Howitt) is a maverick
film director and "enfant
terrible" of the British film industry. He is also hopelessly
addicted to sex, drugs and most of all booze. The film tracks
his eventual realisation of what he is doing to himself,
his reluctant fight to get clean with the encouragement of
his best mate Ray (Pertwee) and Ray's girlfriend, former
alcoholic Kirsten (Rachel Stirling). He then meets and marries
Clare (Burrows) but when she discovers she is pregnant, at
the same time he is diagnosed with cancer.
The film rings with passion and commitment,
it's very well written, lacing the admittedly often grim
and downbeat nature of the story throughout with some very
funny, very English humour. Howitt is gives a fantastically
good performance as this initially totally unlikeable jerk,
with whom he persuades us to identify and sympathise. Like "Sliding Doors" the
structure is unusual, in this case darting about in time,
as it reveals Noah's memories. There is a terrific opening
sequence of Noah escaping from a rehab centre, which pulls
you right into the story and it is visually exciting throughout
in its camera work, including a few well used animation sequences,
the occasional use of black and white and the fantasy idiom
at one point of the director directing a film of his own
life. The dramatic device of Noah's voice inside his head
is particularly effective, taking us right into what makes
this man tick in a rich, chaotic, evocative tumble of words
and ideas. Some of it's a bit difficult to take, as when
early in the film the drunken Noah vomits in Kirsten's child's
bedroom and cancer sufferers and their families might well
find the some of the scenes involving that aspect of the
story more than somewhat upsetting. It is though both achingly
funny and immensely moving, as in the scene where an uncaringly
naked Noah falls off the wagon in his desperate search for
a drink and a sequence towards the end of the story, where
his consultant, an otherwise brilliantly funny performance
from Tom Conti, suggests he writes letters to his family
before it is too late. .
As well as Howitt's performance, all
the supporting roles are impeccably played. This film is
funny, painful and very grown up and despite the ostensibly
depressing subject matter it is very entertaining. It's
good to see Howitt doing his own thing again. This is the
best and most honest work he's done since "Sliding Doors".
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