Life’s a bitch and then you die
That’s why we get high
Cause you never know
When you’re gonna go
Life’s a Bitch – Nas
Men and women grope each other wildly, disputes are settled with a head butt, booze and verbal abuse run freely, and children stare dead-eyed at vacuous television programmes. Welcome to the troubled world of Mia (Katie Jarvis), a surly rake of a 15-year old who spends her time either in the solitary practise of dance routines or getting into loud arguments with all and sundry around her rundown council estate. The neglected product of a single-parent home, temporary solace seems only to be found in cider, cigarettes, and CDs.
The film takes up Mia’s story around the time when her mother (Kierston Wareing) first brings home a new boyfriend Connor (Michael Fassbender). His kindness, humour, and physical presence pique her interest. Indeed, it is thanks to his words of encouragement that Mia gains the courage to put herself forward for a dance audition and a chance at escape from her dead-end existence. However, the pressures of her claustrophobic existence, as well as a growing awareness of her own sexuality inevitably introduce complications into this narrative arc.
As implied by the title, director Andrea Arnold creates a horribly confined and unpleasant world here for the audience to peer in on and for the likes of Mia to see little way out of. Here she is superbly aided by the photography of Robbie Ryan, who captures many fine images, especially of the ominously oppressive weather. Equally, some of the camera shots and lighting techniques are really quite impressive.
On the acting side, Fassbender, who looks here like he has gained little weight since making Hunger, shows his range in a role that balances a sense of sincere parental concern for Mia with a worrying flash of corruptive lechery. Alongside him, Jarvis is then quite astonishing in this debut role – a scrawny ball of bile one minute, a fragile innocent the next. Her fury, intensity, unpredictability, and vulnerability are crucial to the success of several disconcerting scenes in the film’s final third. Finally, Charlotte Collins, as Mia’s younger sister, is a delightful foul-mouthed and impudent imp who brings some much needed humour to this otherwise quite gritty realist drama.
In an overall sense, Arnold presents a very unpleasant world here, where pre-adolescents drink and smoke at home, where parents are shockingly self-absorbed, feckless, and cruel, where its inhabitants only become alive at the prospect of alcohol and sex, and where the life gets slowly crushed out of people. The poignant scene, near the end, in Mia’s living room cleverly serves to illustrate the hopeless choreographed lifes that these characters seem fated to live out. If it was not for the fact that you know that this story is not far from reality for so many people, one might fell tempted to scorn this film for its excesses. Rather, it needs to be praised for still finding humanity in its characters despite its unwillingness to compromise.
On the whole, Fish Tank is a fine working class drama that confirms Arnold’s potential as a worthy successor to the likes of Mike Leigh and Ken Loach.
Filed under: Cinema, Films, Movies | Tagged: Andrea Arnold, Charlotte Collins, Fish Tank, Katie Jarvis, Kierston Wareing, Michael Fassbender, Robbie Ryan
Aye thought it was an excellent film and stellar acting from Fassbender and Jarvis- could not believe it was her first role! Definite comparison with Leigh and Loach and certainly a director to watch out for in the future.
Not surprised that you liked it! Have you seen her first film – Red Road – too? Well worth a watch if not.
Ah didn’t know that was the same director! Liked Red Road as well- quite gripping from what I remember and for once actually surprising when the penny drops at the end. Definitely will keep an eye out for anything from her now!
Aye. “Red Road” is also part of a trilogy project that is meant to use the same cast and characters, but gets helmed by a debutant director each time.
The second film – Rounding Up Donkeys – is supposedly getting a release date soon.
[...] Indeed, for all of its flaws, this drama does have a real allure to it, mostly inspired by Mulligan’s commanding central performance. However, the humorous escapades, the knowledge that all cannot be right with David, and the tension as to how it will all resolve itself give good additional weight to the film, even if the final third is something of a disappointment. An interesting companion piece, on the whole, to Andrea Arnold’s equally noteworthy Fish Tank. [...]