The Unloved - Movie Review

Rating: 4 out of 5

Actress-turned-filmmaker Morton shows a remarkable confidence as director of this intensely personal drama, which is loosely based on her own experiences.
And even though the story wobbles along the way, it's a vital, involving film.

Lucy (Windsor) is an 11-year-old living with her father (Carlyle) in Nottingham. But when a schoolteacher discovers that she has been violently beaten, she's placed in a care home, sharing a room with 16-year-old tearaway Lauren (Socha). Lauren takes Lucy on several rather illicit outings, constantly landing the pair in trouble. And when Lucy wonders why she can't live with her mother (Lynch), her social worker (Stacey) only says that it's not possible.
Surely someone somewhere must want her.

Morton's directing approach is intensely visual, using angles, colour and light to throw us into the situation from Lucy's vulnerable perspective. For example, in the opening scene when her father stands up in anger, he appears to unfold into a huge, menacing giant. And this cleverly inventive approach continues throughout the film, as we follow Lucy into an Alice-like adventure through a particularly terrifying version of Wonderland.

At the centre, Windsor is simply transparent. It's such an offhanded, natural performance that we can't help but identify with her. Through her eyes, mundane things through become glimmers of hope, and we vividly experience her prayerful longing even as we watch the emotion quietly draining from her face as the story progresses. It's a wrenching, heartbreaking performance that contrasts brilliantly with Socha's attitude-filled turn as Lauren, an equally fragile girl who copes with her situation through abrasive bravado.

Morton packs the film with tiny details, blasts of vivid humour and energy, and telling observations. Lucy's only solace is in memories of happier days with her mum and dad, and she seems to be so tiny that she's literally slipping through cracks in a system that should be taking care of her. It's this sense of urgency keeps the plot afloat through a murky third act that seems to drift aimlessly and almost become unstuck in time. Surely this is intentional; the film is far too sharply well-made for it to be an accident. But it does weaken what should be a devastating final punch.

Facts and Figures

Year: 2009

Genre: Dramas

Run time: 106 mins

In Theaters: Sunday 17th May 2009

Distributed by: Oscilloscope Laboratories

Production compaines: EM Media

Reviews

Contactmusic.com: 4 / 5

Rotten Tomatoes: 94%
Fresh: 16 Rotten: 1

IMDB: 6.9 / 10

Cast & Crew

Director: Samantha Morton

Producer: Andrew Eaton, Kate Ogborn

Screenwriter: Tony Grisoni

Starring: Robert Carlyle as Lucy's Father, Lauren Socha as Lauren, Craig Parkinson as Ben, Susan Lynch as Lucy's Mother, Michael Socha as Michael

Also starring: Andrea Lowe, Andrew Eaton, Kate Ogborn, Tony Grisoni