My Brother Tom

very surprised, too, to read so many bad comments. this is, at the very least, the best british film i ve seen this year. very strong, very emotional, very black&white: if u don't like that, do not go. else: IT S A MUST. (ps: FANTASTIC phtography by robby mueller. yes, handheld camera, nevertheless: FANTASTIC)

-funtoosh

The way it is haphazardly edited, the poor quality of the sound and the general disturbed nature of the plot and it's character's, all suggest that Dom Rotheroe has been watching too much of Lars von Trier at al.

We begin with 15 minutes of absolutely nothing - walking to and from school, little dialogue, little plot development apart from a hedgehog and the odd jump from a tree. But this laboured pacing sets us up for the almost 'mentioned-in-passing' rape of a young schoolgirl by her teacher. In her own bedroom. With her mother downstairs in the living room. We know from here that what we are watching is pretty serious stuff.

With an air of 'Heavenly Creatures', the two kids become almost inseparable, stripping off but doing little more than feeling each other and banging foreheads - we are shown an extremely intense relationship between two seriously messed up children.

I thought I recognised the girl who played Jessica from somewhere else, but looking at her bio there is nothing on there that rings a bell. She puts in an impressive performance which she'll probably never match, and one which I'm sure she'd be disappointed has only been witnessed by a small number.

On the whole, the film was very engaging and very hard-hitting - but the biggest compliment I can give, is that I'm pretty sure Mr von Trier would have loved it.

Rarely do first time directors have the confidence to abandon superfluous dialogue and concentrate on the raw emotion of their story. Rotheroe is an exception. Not a frame is wasted as he explores the sexual trauma of two teenagers groping towards understanding in the magical woods.

An incredibly compelling film which had me glued from start to finish. As someone personally affected by the abuse issues raised I felt so much empathy for the characters who were portrayed fantastically by the young actors. Uncomfortable viewing at times, particularly for those with such experiences in there past, but essential non the less. The harsh reality of adults, especially those in powerful positions, reluctance to see what is going on around them is shown brilliantly. Yes it shows a dank view of the world, but talk to 10 young people in your life and its almost guaranteed that at least 5 of them would have experienced similar acts, with no one to turn to.

A film were you need to look beyond such aesthetics as SFX or high budget locations and accept that this stuff really does happen everyday!!!!!!

I found this film very disturbing. I had to watch it until the end.

The acting was such that I had to remind myself that it was acting sometimes. I feel that some actors are very brave to take on certain parts.

I think that in some darker places in the world (e.g. USA), elements of the population would confuse the actor with the part and abuse him. Congratulations to all involved for an excellent performance. The tension is never "Watch out behind you" but "Please, please, not that".

If this film causes just one adult to reflect on how his actions may damage a child then it is very worthwhile.