LAWLESS HEART
Directed by: Tom Hunsinger & Neil Hunter.
Produced by: Martin Pope.
Written by: Hunsinger & Hunter.
Director of Photography: Sean Bobbitt.
Edited by: Scott Thomas.
Music by: Adrian Johnston.
Released by: First Look.
Country of Origin: UK. 86 min. Rated: R.
With: Bill Nighy, Tom Hollander, Douglas Henshall, Josephine Butler, Ellie Haddington & Sukie Smith.
DVD Features: Previews. Spanish Subtitles.

One of the best acted finds of the year, this film of reconciliation is a compassionate and compelling portrayal of a small isolated English seaside town (shot on the Isle of Man) where for the have and have-nots, the used and the users, life has become narrow and constricted. The same events are depicted three times, each version centered around a different man: Dan (Nighy), a haughty family man with a wandering eye but too frightened to act; Nick (Hollander) whose lover, Stuart, has recently died in an accident; and Tim (Henshall), the opportunistic prodigal son and Stuart’s cousin, who returns home after eight years for Stuart’s funeral. According to Stuart’s will, his estate should go to his sister Judy (Haddington), Dan’s judgmental wife, even though she feels Nick should have the money while Dan doesn’t believe that the mens’ relationship qualified as a marriage. Nick hopes Judy will give him the money so he can return to London, and Tim, shaggy haired, wide-eyed, and constantly upbeat, also has a need to score some money. Thrown into this mix is a scene-stealing aging and needy party girl, Charlie (Smith), whom Nick discovers unconscious in his bed after Tim, his erstwhile roomate, has thrown a wild party, and Leah (Butler), a woman with a past whom Tim pursues. What none of the characters (and the audience) expect are the surprising changes of heart that they experience during the course of this briskly paced, funny, and engrossing movie. Eventually, pieces in this convoluted, but clearly told, mosaic fall into place. Directors Hunsinger and Hunter have an eye for telling the story visually, as well as for writing smart and thoughtful dialogue. And each actor maintains a high caliber performance. Absorbed in his own moral dilemma, Dan brilliantly dismisses Nick. Henshall, as the boy who won’t grow up, is both ingratiating and repelling. Even characters with small screen time are instantly fleshed out as real people. An exciting introduction to a talented British ensemble largely unknown in the U.S. KT
May 5, 2003