Lowland Fell

I recently saw this at the 2008 Palm Springs International Short Fest. This is a story of a 17 year old girl Lowland Fell (Jane McGrath) who is on her own in rural Ireland while her father is on an archaeological dig. On a bicycle ride through the country side she meets two brothers Mark (Robert Sheehan) and John (Michael Winder) near her age who are cutting peat in the bogs. She accidentally makes a remarkable discovery which leads to she and the brothers spending an evening together at their nearby farmhouse. It's really not much of a story but it's beautifully shot by cinematographer Suzie Lavelle and nicely directed by director/writer Michael Kinirons, a graduate of the National Film School in London who was at my screening for an audience Q&A. Irish television actors McGrath and Robert Sheenan with Winder turn in good screen roles. McGrath has a natural screen presence and is in virtually every scene. A fantastic music score from Chris White. This is a strange little film but is a strong testament to the talent involved in it's production. Elaine Harrington co-writes, art direction from Francis Taafe and Zoe Ellis edits. I would give this a 7.5 out of 10 and recommend it.

Although it s very nicely paced and filmed, I'm not entirely sure how to take this film. The plot sees a girl out in a boggy area of Ireland with her father, an archaeologist. She gets lost in the peat bogs and finds two very attractive brothers working together who give her directions. She faints off her bike nearby, falling into a bog and discovering the remains of a man supposedly killed as part of a ritual many years ago. She tries to tell her father but is uninterested so she stays with the two men, going back to their house to clean up. Staying the night and turning 17 that very day, the girl continues to explore and discover things for the first time.

There is a theme here of discovery but I am not sure how to take the connection between the father's job, the girl's discovery and the final discovery of the film. I'm also not sure how to take the meaning of the final shot and the progression of the plot and the ritualistic nature of parts of it. It seems to be a path of discovery for the girl but it seems a very specific and convoluted way to deliver this – with so many other aspects in here distracting from that central theme. It is very well made around this, with a good pace to the story telling that draws you along and a nice natural air to the performances and the places. It held my attention and it interested me throughout, but the theme of exploring and stumbling into new discoveries seemed a bit too convoluted and generally I didn't totally get where the film was trying to go with it.