Junkhearts

Art & Culture

Excellent independent British film starring the amazing Eddie Marsan as an ex-soldier suffering from post traumatic stress, who takes in a homeless girl and treats her like a daughter, though her dodgy geezer boyfriend does his best to screw things up.

Meanwhile, middle class single mum Romola Garai leads a life of quiet desperation and financial unreliability.

Much of the credit for the success of the film is due to Marsan who deserves to be given his due when it comes to acting. It seems there's very little he can't do, and in Junkhearts he is the emotional centre of a story which covers a lot of emotional bases. The sub story with Garai doesn't really fit into the rest of the film, with an ending which manages to be both unexpected and pat, but the scenes between Marsan and the young woman he takes in have a tenderness and credibility that holds the rest of the film in place – just about.

6/10

Phil Raby

Front Row Films

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