Boy A

Few films wowed audiences at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival as much as John Crowley's "Boy A." Scipted by Mark O'Rowe from a Jonathan Trigell novel, "Boy A" is a story-driven mystery which is carried on the shoulders of newcomer Andrew Garfield, in a tour de force performance that dominates the film from opening title to closing credits.

Jack Burridge is leaving prison after a 14-year sentence for a crime he committed as a child. His mentor Terry has been working to gain his release and help him transition into the new world in which he'll live and work under a new identity. It's up to Jack to determine who he wants to be, but it's up to those around him to determine whether or not he will be allowed to do so. It's that challenge which is at the heart of "Boy A." Andrew Garfield ("Doctor Who," "Lions for Lambs") is frighteningly brilliant as Jack. It's his movie to make or break, and this role is sure to be singled out as the launching pad for what is destined to be a notable career. The viewer sees a sweet, sensitive, puppy dog of a young man while his secret past indicates something completely different. We wrestle with that concept as he does himself, and it's an emotional, moving piece of work. As his counselor Terry, Peter Mullan ("Trainspotting," "Children of Men") is the father figure who provides a foundation for Terry's wandering existence. His attempts to keep Jack alive and well are both heartening and heartbreaking.

"Boy A" is visually stunning. The interplay of light and shadow through the use of diffusion filters and silhouette gave me chills. The dramatic manipulation of white light is a seemingly simple device but cuts to the bone. Cinematographer Rob Hardy demonstrates true artistry with camera-work that is often a character in itself. A recurring visual theme using tunnels, alleyways, hallways, and bridges stands out even to the untrained eye. Paddy Cunneen's score makes it clear that this is, at its heart, a tale of intrigue.

Told in flashback, the secrets of "Boy A" are revealed in bits and pieces. The reality of who Jack is becomes more powerful and painful as the film progresses. Garfield is so charismatic, and his Jack so incredibly sympathetic, that this film easily rises to the top of those screened at this year's festival. John Crowley's "Boy A" is a master class in the art of film-making.

A young man is released from prison after being incarcerated since he was a child. His attempts to adjust to the outside world aren't always successful.

This isn't a feel good movie about a struggle for redemption or the effects of rehabilitation. This is a dark, gritty and realistic view of how things could be for a person newly released after a horrible crime.

There isn't a lot of graphic bloodshed; most of that is implied instead of being played for shock value. That's good; this movie doesn't need any more shock value than is already portrayed. You aren't particularly encouraged to sympathize with the ex-con, nor are you encouraged to condemn him. Instead the film makes you an objective observer to his trials and tribulations, his attempts to get into society with as little trouble as possible, the reactions of people who know and work with him.

This movie hearkens back to the great working class British film dramas of the 1960s. Inspired, I believe, by an actual crime of about a decade ago, in which one child killed another child, the movie provocatively imagines the life of the killer many years afterward. At one point the protagonist is called a monster by a character who has never met him. I was reminded of the cover of a major news magazine at the time of the Columbine massacre, which featured a picture of the adolescent killers with the caption "monsters." I thought to myself that, however disturbed, these are still human beings more like than unlike the rest of us, and what does it say about the rest of us if we deny their humanity and refuse to look at the source of their disturbance? This is the very starting point of "Boy A" and the conclusions it reaches about "the rest of us" are bleak. This is a deeply, disturbingly sad movie. I found it intensely involving, and intensely moving. However, if you watch it, be prepared for a vision of humanity so dark that the most humane character in the story is a murderer.

BOY A also gets RIGHT up in your face...literally. This engrossing film treats you to a wide array of emotions and forces you to come to grips with some very serious and highly complex issues....

How should society handle a murder when its perpetrators are only 11 or 12 years old???

One of my most cherished and appreciated qualities in any film is just how intensely issues and images from the film continue to ricochet around in your brain... and how prolonged that process ends up being! Primarily based on these key factors, BOY A gets a resounding 10 Stars!

What is hardest for me to comprehend, in relation to this film is, that despite having dominated the BAFTA awards not all that many years back and showing an impressive 7.7 IMDb rating, it seems a sure bet that it has found a relatively limited U. S. audience! Soembody please explain that to me..."like I were a six-year-old!"

BOY A is hard to watch without tearing up at some moments...... Yet, I am convinced that Director John Crowley never strived to that end, it is just that the subject matter is such that it provides quite a number of emotional gut punches!

Owing to Andrew Garfield's recent turn as SPIDERMAN, hearing his name probably would not illicit a knee-jerk, "Wow! What a great dramatic actor!" But here, in a role relatively near the beginning of his on screen career, his portrayal of a 24 year old who is rereleased into society after being institutionalized For half of his life is deliciously nuanced and astoundingly impacting!

It's really hard to find anything NOT to like with this British masterpiece!

ENJOY! / DISFRUTELA!

Any comments, questions or observations, in English o en Español, are most welcome!

Lately there have been a lot of movies about real life situations.And most of them were good.But this one definitely jumps out from all the others. First of all,The story is unique.I truly don't think that this kind of story has been used before.It grab your attention from its beginning ti its end.Secondly,while watching this movie I have seen some of the greatest performances lately.Actors aren't well known but I am sure they will become soon if they keep it up like this.At moments I felt as if I were a part of this amazing story,and that is one of the greatest qualities a movie can have. All in all,this is a must see movie.At times it pictures joy,at times it pictures reality,at time it pictures pain but most of the time it pictures human behavior towards someone unusual,someone we aren't used to meeting every day.And finally it shows the great strength from the main character to overcome all the obstacles in his life,he accepts his reality and he learns to deal with it.It pictures human nature. So if you like touching movies,filled with lots of emotions,showing the life as it is,than this is a must see.And trust me - you won't regret it...