This documentary style film revisits the William Blake poem about London and looks at the Lambeth Marsh area through the eyes of those who live and work there. Many of these people have unique stories and experiences to share.
Using the poem of William Blake as a reference point is a worthy and interesting way to do this short, documentary style film. It also has an interesting idea of different people from the area telling stories - some are interesting and have insight or nice touches while others border on the trivial despite being dressed up as insight. The car window washer is still a person and deserves to be heard but has nothing more to say than how to wash a window.
One man tells of how he though London was in the sky because all he knew was that you had to get a plane to get there! The direction is also interesting as we see the narrators in different settings, in differing scenes and stages in their lives. This sounds fascinating but sadly it isn't - it somehow seems to be less than the sum of it's parts. It's a shame as it had everything going for it. I felt that the mix f stories was a little weakened by one or two of them and that the Marsh sections didn't sit well with the rest. All the children diving into the water distracted me from wanting to listen to people's experiences. I'm sure there was a symbolism or meaning to it all but I'm afraid it was a little lost on me.
Overall this is worth a look because it has plenty of good things about it. However for some reason it just fails to ignite for a mix of reasons. But, those bits that work well, still works well enough to justify 10 minutes of anyone's time - even if you're not from London.
