The Selfish Giant (2013)

[Vodka Margarine]

Modern grim-up-North interpretation of the Oscar Wilde story, from Clio Barnard - best known for 2010's The Arbor, a docu-film based on the life of playwright Andrea Dunbar.

For those not used to the genre of brutal brit realism as popularised by Ken Loach or Shane Meadows, it may prove to be an uncomfortable ride but I found this to be a genuinely emotional portrayal of desperate lives trying to crawl out of the same ceaseless soup of shit.

It's a little bleako by numbers in places but there's some dark charm by equal measure. The unrelenting 'grittiness' does not feel overstylised or romanticised as these kind of films often can in the pursuit of authenticity. Perhaps this is down to the use of hitherto unknown and unglamorous actors in the lead child roles (a nod to Meadows). Sean 'Shameless' Gilder is a huge asset and delivers a terrifying performance as a kind of psychopathic scrapyard Fagin.

Spoiler alert

Doesn't end terribly well.

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You may well find a trip to the pub afterwards will help. Still, it's practically a Disney film compared to the biblically depressing The Arbor.