Half Broken Things

Tim Fywell has been perhaps the best British television drama director for many years now, and it is a mystery why he has not been gobbled up by the big feature film producers yet. But here he is with his latest offering, and it is just as chilling and anxiety-producing as his eerie and unforgettable Barbara Vine dramas of the 1990s. This disturbing and nail-biting tale is based upon a novel by Morag Joss and is excellently scripted by Alan Whiting. What puts the whole project over the top into a realm of its own is the impeccable casting and the acting by the three principals. Penelope Wilton, Daniel Mays, and Sinead Matthews are so overwhelmingly convincing that one simply cannot imagine anybody else playing any of their roles. They absolutely became those people, to a terrifying degree. The intensity of this film is almost unbearable. The characters come together to live a dangerous joint fantasy life in somebody else's empty house. All of them are seriously damaged souls who have suffered terrible psychological deprivation or even physical abuse. In each other they finally find what they have always been looking for. But living a dream is dangerous, because there is something big and threatening called Reality which doesn't like people to do this and get away with it. What will happen? How bad can it get? The intensity rises, and rises, and rises. No pity is shown to the viewers who maybe can't stand all of this anxiety, want to turn it off, but can't. What solution can there possibly be? By now we are so enamoured of the three characters that we want them to win, they are all so endearing, so pathetic, so much at the very edge of human desperation and need. Why can't people who have been driven that far find some comfort and be entitled to it? And then the moral barriers begin to become permeable, and things begin to leak through, dripping, dripping, ominously. And the clock is ticking.

This is billed as a drama and thriller. It should, more correctly, be labeled as horror – and quite a suspenseful one at that.

The story concerns a fifty-nine-year-old woman (Penelope Wilton) who house-sits through an agency. She's been doing it for decades but, as we soon learn, this is her last job: when she turns sixty she'll be discharged with no prospects for further work. That type of future, of course, is a recipe for depression – and other things.

Coincidentally, we are introduced to a young con man (Daniel Mays) – but a likable one, sort of – who works the rural and suburban areas for objets d'art that he can steal and sell-on to shady dealers. He's currently on the run from one of his escapades that went wrong. And, while still running, so to speak, he comes across a battered woman (Sinead Mathews) at a petrol station who pleads with the young fellow to take her away – quickly, please quickly – from her abusive and violent partner. Being the good Samaritan, he impulsively does the right thing. Or, so he thinks.

Realizing that he needs more money now – with a woman on board and a pregnant one, at that – he sets out to find another easy mark somewhere. Ultimately, he decides to pull into the large mansion where the good house-sitter is ensconced, in the hope of perpetrating another con. Making that decision, however, seals the fate of all three - as well others...

There are three elements that help to keep this narrative flowing logically: first, the consistent adherence to cause and effect that determines plot; second, the psychology of the three main characters, each of whom needs psychological help like an alcoholic needs the next drink; and finally, a believable script that is thoughtfully presented and well acted out by the three protagonists/antagonists. It's almost unnecessary to say that the direction and editing are flawless.

Life is all about cause and effect, obviously. Everyday life is also about co-incidences, many of which are strange, even weird. Hence, the use of co-incidence as a plot device in this story is well within reasonable limits, I think. Some viewers might disagree, however.

The most unsettling aspect for me, and other perhaps, is that the whole story shows the extent to which seemingly average – whatever average means to you – people will go to protect their interests and well-being, including performing horrific acts when it appears no other option is available.

Who has never said "I'll kill you for that…"? Who has never had the darkest thoughts about how to handle a perceived enemy? Oh, I'm not excusing the horror of this story. I'm simply pointing out it's a very human story about many so-called average people; and three who throw caution to the winds and who make self-serving choices when escape seems impossible.

It's a story for adults, of course; I'd suggest that most teenagers would be bored, however.

Highly recommended.

December 11, 2011

What happens when three lonely people, all of whom are looking for something, be it love, support or comfort, encounter one another, and begin living a lie, a sumptuous, comfortable, glorious lie?

What a wonderful ninety minute drama this is, it's so incredibly weird and wonderful, but engaging, funny, intriguing, and has a real shock moment.

It starts off In a somewhat serious tone, then becomes an almost whimsical drama of wonder and disbelief, until the traumatic act that totally transforms the story.

Stef had come from an awful home life, Jason truly was a monster, Michael started off as a petty thief, was Jean perhaps the most deluded and crazed of them all? Did she perhaps cause the events?

I wonder if like me, you kept on waiting for people to turn up?

It's crazy, it's brilliant. 9/10.

I can't say I found this drama at all entertaining.

It started off ok with an interesting storyline but soon it degenerated to a level where it was impossible to have any sort of sympathy with the lead characters.

The inevitable ending was unfulfilling because there was no way that it could have ended positively.

Good performances, but flawed characters.

Downloaded from YouTube.

Slightly above-average made-for-TV film with an interesting plot premise suited for the larger screen. The limitations of made-for-television cause some scenes to feel a campy in execution, though I appreciate the way in which the audience is treated with respect. The narration was poetic without feeling conceited, and the plot was cohesive enough for us to feel contented in the denoument, yet left enough inconsistencies, clues, and things left unsaid for us to contribute to the narrative with our own introspection and interpretations (ie. The true cause of death for certain characters.) In that aspect, the film contains an implied mystery, should one choose to read into it beyond a surface level, on top of its drama and suspense. As for acting, our star lead is as poetic and poignant as ever. What really caught my interest however is the young female co-star. She reminded me so much of a more amateurish Britanny Murphy should she be born in the UK, which I think was a perfect choice for the direction in which her character developed. Tragic, horrifying, and beautiful. A pleasant afternoon or evening watch.