Some Voices

I only saw the last hour of this film but it is an excellent insight into mental illness, as well as the urban jungle of London (west London and Acton/Shepherds Bush, in particular).

Daniel Craig is brilliant (never heard of him before) as the mixed up man who visits and stays with his brother and frequents his quaint little bistro in the high street.

Lots of Godard-style jump cuts and freeze-frames, presumably to mimic the mind of a schizophrenic, accompanied by a fine soundtrack. Another great little motif is having all the characters live or work next to very busy thoroughfares - Ray's brother (Peter Macdonald) of course lives on the third floor at the same level as the flyover about 50 feet away, with constant motion and noise.

The film even features cooking lessons at the end, as Ray is quietly rehabilitated, ironically set and filmed in the hinterland of Jamie Oliver, the original 'naked chef' on BBC tv who is always shown at some point traversing these same streets on his Italian moped (always wearing a crash helmet, of course!). Daniel Craig is more authentic as he's seen naked in the street during a crisis.

The film's quite emotional, too, especially the kitchen arson scene where Dave is visibly concerned.

I've watched two films tonight back to back; Ken Loach's Ladybird Ladybird and now Some voices. What a double bill and compelling evidence that British film is wonderful. Daniel Craig is Ray, recently released from a psychiatric hospital. He meets the lovely Glaswegian girl Laura (Kelly Macdonald) and is so happy he thinks he no longer needs his medication. His brother (Scouser David Morrissey with a very strange and to be honest sometimes offputting Southern accent) looks after him through thick and thin. Blood is thicker than water and all that. A beautiful story of love and humanity against the backdrop of mental illness. A moving 8 out of ten

Some Voices centres on Ray (Craig) and his release from a psychiatric hospital. His rehabilation starts fairly well, with Ray working for his protective brother Pete (Morrissey) in a restaurant. However, when Ray falls head over heels in love with Laura (McDonald), a wild Scottish girl, and stops taking his medication, matters spiral out of control. Directorial debutant Simon Cellan Jones has effectively captured the colour (mostly grimy) and energy of Shepherds Bush. However, this is an actors piece and as such Craig and McDonald shine. Especially, McDonald who brings a natural warmth to a difficult role. Ultimately, both a disturbing and rewarding film, but don't expect any belly laughs or easy answers.

Funny, charming and with good music. The story of two different brothers working in a restaurant. This is one of those movies that's great to catch on TV during a weekend and not knowing what to expect.

It opens very comedic and lighthearted and slowly drifts and becomes more serious and dramatic as the run-time vanishes. I found it to be very touching to be honest. The older brother helping the younger and the younger having his psychological disorder. The acting is very good in this, especially in the second half, but over all it was good.

The romance may put some people off thinking it's clichéd. It may seem, but it goes in different directions and it's all handled very realistically. Either way it's nice to see the troubled main character find happiness after being under treatment for so long. The scenes in the restaurant were fun and I liked the dialogue and the back and forth banter between characters. You could say it's like "Chef" but with a recovering schizophrenic being the one working with the Chef instead of John Leguizamo.

It's an easy watch I'd say. If you wanna see a comedy with some heart and maybe some dramatic moments, then you can lean back and give this a watch. I thought the ending lifted the movie up even more and made the whole thing even better. Well, those are some thoughts or maybe some voices? OK, maybe I shouldn't end on a joke. Either way, check it out if you can.

This really is a surprisingly good film - it's only just opened, and already the reviews are mixed. To me it's a refreshingly unsentimental and non-sensationalist portrait of schizophrenia. None of the characters is perfect, but none of them are irredeemable either, and there seems to be an underlying optimism about human nature. Despite what the previous reviewer wrote, I actually laughed quite a few times, as well as being moved at other times. The three main performances are all excellent, with Kelly Mcdonald especially good (why isn't this woman more well-known, why oh why??). The other characters are well portrayed too, especially Mandy the waitress. West London looks stunning (just kidding!), the filming and acting are naturalistic, and the music on the soundtrack is effective too. I hope the film makes it to the US.