Billy Elliot Grows Up

Hallam Foe - 3/5

Following a string of supprting turns in the likes of King Kong and Flags of Our Fathers, Hallam Foe provides Billy Elliot star Jamie Bell with his first real chance to star in a lead role since his breakthrough hit. He plays the title character in this tale of a rather disturbed young man (hobbies including peeping tom-ing and picking locks) who becomes convinced that his mother didn't really commit suicide, but was murdered by his step-mother (Claire Forlani). Running away to Edinburgh, he takes a job at a hotel in order to be close to the HR manager (Sophie Myles) who bears an uncanny resemblance to mum. The Freudian element is not so much a subtext as blatantly in the foreground, which does lead to a few moments which are maybe unnnecessarily twisted and disturbed.

On the whole this is very watchable and entertaining, if somewhat offbeat. Director David Mackenzie does a good job of capturing both the beautiful countryside and the Edinburgh cityscape, shot mainly from the rooftops where Hallam surveys the world. Bell is ably supported by Ciaran Hinds in a very restrained performance and Forlani, who adds enough calculating iciness to the step-mother to keep some question about what really happened. Jamie Syves is suitably vicious as the love-rival, whilst Ewan Bremner is wasted in just a few lines as a colleague.

However, at the end of the day, it all depends on Bell and he gives Hallam enough charm and humour to keep us watching even as it becomes clear just how disturbed he is. Its a performance which confirms the leading man talent we all knew he had.

Strangely the weak link is Myles - not in terms of performance, but in terms of characterisation. She falls between a distant, unknowable object of affection and an understandable character and some of her actions seems to decidedly strange without us ever really understanding what motivates her - when learning that Hallam's interest in her comes from her resemblance to her mum, rather than running screaming, she offers to wear her dress.

Like Hallam, overall the movie has enough charm and humour to keep you watching through the icky bits. Maybe not to everybody's taste though.