Joyride

My Review- Joyride. . My Rating 9/10

Another impressive Irish film with yet another impressive and talented new actor 14 year old Charlie Reid from County Kildare .

I recently reviewed another recent movie An Irish Goodbye also mentioning it's teenage star Catherine Clinch another 14 year old as a future actor to watch out for .

I can say the same for Charlie Reid who plays Mully a bright young teenager who's father James played by Lochlann O'Mearáin is leading him down the wrong path. Young Mully's mother has recently died of cancer so he's at a very vulnerable point in his life where he could follow in his father's footsteps or go the right way." At a pub benefit to raise money for cancer in memory of his mother Mully can see his father wants to steal the money that's meant for charity so he steals it himself rather than let his Dad waste it .

He then steals a taxi rather with his father in pursuit and when he gets far enough away much to his surprise which is not a pleasant one finds that he has unwittingly kidnapped a drunken woman ,inappropriately named Joy plus her newborn baby .

Joy a Solicitor didn't want a baby ,didn't think she was still of childbearing age and doesn't even know who the father is ? The unnamed baby could have even been conceived on a drunken spree ,she wouldn't know .

Olivia Coleman plays Joy and delivers yet another superb performance her character roles just get better and better and she for me is right up there on my top ten list of contemporary Actresses in movies and television today .

I've watched her play Royalty, a serial killer, a mentally disturbed woman ,a socialite, a daughter caring for an ailing father, a wicked Godmother, Madam Thénardier in Les Miz a Detective and the list goes on , what next?

Her character is this film Joy is a solicitor who we first see in a drunken stupor asleep in the back of the stolen taxi with her unnamed baby which she is hoping to offload to her sister who lives miles away in Lanzarote , as she hasn't bonded with the baby at all .

This is where this joyful at times very humorous and very touching road trip begins with the 2 runaways Mully and Joy who at first seem such an unlikely pair but soon realise they have much in common as they negotiate the terms of their journey.

Young Mully has more maternal instinct in his little finger than Joy has in her whole body . Joy just want to move forward as she keeps telling Mully .

In a touching scene full of Irish charm Mully asks if the baby has a name ?

Joy doesn't reply then spies a robin which just happened to be a symbol for Mully's deceased mother.

Without knowing this Joy replies that the baby's name is Robin and we begin to see a thawing out of her character but not before arguments and insults on both sides . The chemistry between Olivia Coleman and young Charlie Reid is obvious from the beginning they must have really enjoyed working together.

Skilfully directed by Emer Reynolds from a screenplay by Ailbhe Keogan who also wrote the terrific television 2022 series Bad Sisters have created a very interesting and entertaining movie.

There were a few puzzling plot lines for me but I put that down to Irish blarney no fact checker required because this refreshingly is not based on any true events .

Beautifully Filmed in locations that include Tralee Kerry Airport and the beach at Ardfert in County Kerry Ireland Joyride for me was a joy to be sure to be sure to be sure ......

I enjoyed the varied pace and well played characters. The young man was a convincing actor and his character, Mully, had a good heart. The conflicted Joy was performed truthfully by Olivia Coleman, although the accent slipped once or twice. She was only about 47 when she played Joy, an age when many women are still capable of conceiving a baby! The father was a little two dimensional, fixated on the acquisition of money, not being a loving parent, and seemingly not grieving his deceased wife. The story was filled with many of the contradictions and tribulations common in life. It was genuine to those dichotomies and still had a hopeful ending.

Joyride

Overall this was a mixed bag of a movie. On the one hand it attempted to be profound with comments on parenting, childhood baggage, what it means to be a mother and sometimes blood is not thick than water, and then attempted humour in a farcical vane.

The script struggled and showed little emotional intelligence, connecting with another human being does not a parent make. You could see the actors struggling with the often stilted script, which fell apart in the denouement.

To believe the contrived happy ending was absurd and I certainly wasn't convinced. The acting was at best pedestrian and at it worst performative.

This is barely watchable so I'm giving it a 4 outta 10, with Olivia not all that glitters comes in the shape of an Oscar statuette.

Emer Reynolds has produced a very successful director.

Olivia Coleman and Charlie Reid make a great duo team. Although it was Reid's first major project, he performed successfully in front of a great actress like Coleman. Ray Harman's compositions and Aibhe Keogan's scripts are very good. I love candid films that tell little stories like this. Everyone watches blockbuster movies now... Cinema has lost sincere films...

If there is a blu-ray edition, I will definitely buy it.

I hope movies like this continue to be made and the cinema doesn't give in to movies that make millions of dollars but don't have a soul.

A heartwarming and bittersweet tale of two unlikely travelers who find solace in each other while on the run from their pasts. 13-year-old Mully (Charlie Reid) and uptight solicitor Joy (Olivia Colman) set out on a journey across the Irish countryside, learning to cope with unplanned disruptions and unexpected challenges.

Reynolds' direction is strong, capturing the beauty of the Irish landscape through the lens of cinematographer James Mather. The film is visually stunning, with breathtaking shots of the seaside and foggy hills. However, some of the more surreal moments in the film feel out of place and throw off the tone of the story.

But where "Joyride" truly shines is in the performances of Reid and Colman. Mully and Joy are both grieving the loss of their mothers and struggling to find their place in the world. They form a bond that helps them cope with their pain and move forward, learning to rely on each other when other parental figures have failed them.

Overall, "Joyride" is a charming and emotional film that manages to balance its heavy themes with moments of levity and joy. While it may not be as smooth as some of the best feel-good movies, its unwieldy charm and powerful performances make for a memorable journey.