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Director: Sam Taylor Wood; Screenwriter: Julia Baird, Matt Greenhalgh; Starring: Kristin Scott Thomas, Aaron Johnson, Thomas Sangster, Anne-Marie Duff, David Threlfall; Running time: 97 mins; Certificate: 15
The directorial debut from British conceptual artist Sam Taylor Wood (she of the sleeping David Beckham video), Nowhere Boy pulls into focus the early life of John Lennon and his relationships with two of the women that helped shape him into a musical icon. The setting is the mid-'50s, so there's no Yoko or Beatlemania, instead it's kitchen sink drama and everyday struggles for a temperamental Liverpudlian teen. Ignore the Lennon and Beatles intrigue in Nowhere Boy and the story doesn't carry much inspiration. The end result is a dreary, slight biopic (just 97 mins) that leaves you thinking, 'Is that it?'
After the abrupt death of his uncle George, John (Johnson) finds out that his birth mother Julia (Duff) has been living only a stone's throw away. She is eccentric and vibrant, a sharp contrast to the woman who is raising him, stern aunt Mimi (Thomas). His and Julia's is an almost Oedipal connection next to the headmistress/naughty schoolboy bond with Mimi. John is whisked away on a day out to Blackpool by Julia and accepted into her family, much to the annoyance of her boyfriend Bobby (Morrissey). John learns to play the banjo with Julia and finds his calling, channelling the raw energy of Elvis Presley to front The Quarrymen with Paul McCartney (Sangster). The rest is rock 'n' roll history.
Scripted by Control's Matt Greenhalgh, Nowhere Boy opts to explore the man instead of the myth, alluding to the greatness Lennon would go on to achieve by placing the Cavern Club and Strawberry Field in the background - not to mention the title's riff on Rubber Soul track 'Nowhere Man'. This format worked for Greenhalgh's Joy Division biopic because Ian Curtis never found fame in his lifetime and had to battle through the daily grind. Lennon was a more colourful personality and, though Johnson makes a good fist of finding the caustic sarcasm and moody personality, the film almost feels ashamed to acknowledge the Beatles or Lennon's genius-level talent.
Taylor Wood's largely no-frills direction may be unexpected considering her artistic background, but there are a few neat touches of visual flair, most notably in a sequence where Lennon gets to grips with the banjo. A single shot tracks him from clumsy beginner to expert while people speed around in a whirling blur. Taylor Wood shows calmness behind the lens, not wanting to let visual gymnastics overrun her actors - it's an admirable trait, though she could've done with a more vibrant script for her debut. Ultimately, Nowhere Boy isn't as good a legends-in-the-making film as Backbeat and doesn't get near A Hard Day's Night, but then that had the advantage of featuring the real thing. Like Elvis, The Beatles are continuing to prove a tough nut to crack on screen.
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After the abrupt death of his uncle George, John (Johnson) finds out that his birth mother Julia (Duff) has been living only a stone's throw away. She is eccentric and vibrant, a sharp contrast to the woman who is raising him, stern aunt Mimi (Thomas). His and Julia's is an almost Oedipal connection next to the headmistress/naughty schoolboy bond with Mimi. John is whisked away on a day out to Blackpool by Julia and accepted into her family, much to the annoyance of her boyfriend Bobby (Morrissey). John learns to play the banjo with Julia and finds his calling, channelling the raw energy of Elvis Presley to front The Quarrymen with Paul McCartney (Sangster). The rest is rock 'n' roll history.
Scripted by Control's Matt Greenhalgh, Nowhere Boy opts to explore the man instead of the myth, alluding to the greatness Lennon would go on to achieve by placing the Cavern Club and Strawberry Field in the background - not to mention the title's riff on Rubber Soul track 'Nowhere Man'. This format worked for Greenhalgh's Joy Division biopic because Ian Curtis never found fame in his lifetime and had to battle through the daily grind. Lennon was a more colourful personality and, though Johnson makes a good fist of finding the caustic sarcasm and moody personality, the film almost feels ashamed to acknowledge the Beatles or Lennon's genius-level talent.
Taylor Wood's largely no-frills direction may be unexpected considering her artistic background, but there are a few neat touches of visual flair, most notably in a sequence where Lennon gets to grips with the banjo. A single shot tracks him from clumsy beginner to expert while people speed around in a whirling blur. Taylor Wood shows calmness behind the lens, not wanting to let visual gymnastics overrun her actors - it's an admirable trait, though she could've done with a more vibrant script for her debut. Ultimately, Nowhere Boy isn't as good a legends-in-the-making film as Backbeat and doesn't get near A Hard Day's Night, but then that had the advantage of featuring the real thing. Like Elvis, The Beatles are continuing to prove a tough nut to crack on screen.
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Also @Ed Art school and Stu were mentioned at the end. They could've ended it at Stu's death but then that would have taked away the film's focus which was on his family.
I really enjoyed this film and do not understand this review at all.
Simon, DS Movies Editor, on January 2nd, 2010
Ed, have you seen Backbeat? It deals with Stuart Sutcliffe's involvement in the band and I'd say it's a more interesting film than Nowhere Boy.
Ed, have you seen Backbeat? It deals with Stuart Sutcliffe's involvement in the band and I'd say it's a more interesting film than Nowhere Boy.
Visual artist Sam Taylor Wood has crafted the most entertaining and thought provoking piece of Lennon mythology to date in her debut feature film Nowhere Boy. The movie chronicles the adolescent years of John Lennon. Having been brought up by his Aunt Mimi, John's world is turned upside when his free spirited mother Julia re-enters his life, ripping him open and pulling out his artistry as well as pain, anger and frustration. A number of films and documentaries have tried and failed to make a definitive statement about John Lennon the human being. The reason why Nowhere Boy is so successful is because we are presented with a complex and multi faceted young man, who was a number of things to a number of people and impossible to pigeonhole. Based on the novel by John's sister Julia Baird with the script penned by Matt Greenhalgh, Nowhere Boy possesses an enormously strong emotional undercurrent that is missing from many films of the biopic genre. The Lennon legend has risen to almost unparalleled mythical heights within our culture and Greenhalgh does a superb job at humanising the story, so much that you forget that you are watching a film about a legend in the making, but rather the story of a young boy caught between the women he loves. The women in question are John's Aunt Mimi played by the ever brilliant Kristen Scott Thomas and his mother Julia, brought to life in a star making turn by Anne-Marie Duff. Though much of the acclaim seems to be percolating around Duff's performance, Scott Thomas deserves to be equally praised for making the incredibly complex character of Mimi relatable and sympathetic. In the wrong hands Aunt Mimi could have come across as highly unlikeable considering she can often appear distant and cold, but Scott Thomas juxtaposes these instances with such an understated kindness and warmth that we as the audience realise that Mimi is a very caring person who has the misfortune of finding it almost impossible to express sentimental feelings. On the other end of the spectrum Julia appears to be everything Mimi isn't- a free spirit who flouts convention and lives for a good time. Julia is a flirt. She flirts with life, men and even her own son. There is a rather incestuous undercurrent to her and John's relationship such as when she lays on top of him, lost in ecstasy to the tune "I Put A Spell On You". The scene is uncomfortable, as is many aspects of their relationship. In many ways she seems more like a girlfriend to John and as the movie progresses we begin to understand more and more Mimi's misgivings. In many ways Julia has never really grown up and only knows how to engage with men in this seductive manner. John Lennon is played by relative unknown Aaron Johnson, mainly associated with his role in Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging. Johnson breaks free from the shackles of his teen pin-up persona and delivers a mature and layered performance worthy of accolades. Johnson fully embodies Lennon's complexities; he is both good and bad, insecure and arrogant, sensitive and brutal, caring and careless. From Lennon's wit to his magnetism, pain, anger and sarcasm, Johnson gets it all. Considering Lennon is one of the most imitated celebrities of our time Johnson does well to avoid caricature, creating a version of Lennon at his most human. Johnson's vocal abilities also sound eerily reminiscent of a young Lennon, making him an excellent choice in more ways than one. Taylor Wood is definitely a talent to watch as she not only elicits fine performances from her cast but also manages to capture the essence of post war Liverpool in a vivid and imaginative way. Gone are the bleak greys, squalid mean streets and endless rows of two up two down houses that usually characterises the depictions of the area. Instead we are presented with a much more colorful and vibrant depiction of Liverpool, a City just beginning to discover the charms of rock and roll. The excitement in the air is palpable. One of the greatest attributes of Nowhere Boy is the soundtrack, crammed with classics from Elvis Presley, Screamin' Jay Hawkins, Jerry Lee Lewis and Eddie Cochran. Coupled with these original rock songs are covers sung by Aaron Johnson and Thomas Sangstar as their respective characters. Nowhere Boy is an absolute gem of a film that will hopefully find the audience it deserves. You'll laugh, cry and kick yourself for not learning guitar in your youth. Possibly the most touching film of the year, there is nowhere else you should be on Boxing Day. FOR MORE REVIEWS FEEL FREE TO VISIT http://rantsreviews4filmnuts.blogspot.com/
Very powerful about the pain which Lennon suffered, and the void which beckoned. His frantic attempts to escape that are surely what fuelled his genius, and the hurt is what makes the film work much better than most of the egotistical critics allow.
great movie
A very enjoyable film, with good period atmosphere and detail except for minor anachroniisms of language(eg US "Do you have" for UK ""Have you got?") and costume (eg the giant gold "hippy" glasses in the 1950s, surely?). But a fairly long-drawn out (and borderline sentimental) story of a "tug of love" - it would have made an excellent 60 minute TV special - as perhaps it still might. It seems very unfair on McCartney in terms of looks and charisma and perhaps too kind and one-dimensional in terms of character and music(almost saintly, fully-formed musical genius / virtuoso?). And what about art school and Stu etc? We could have done without some of the repetitive flashbacks - but I still loved it! Ed
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Backbeat is a decidedly average mid 90s movie. NB is far superior in acting script etc.