BOY A
UK, 2007, 100 minutes, Colour.
Andrew Garfield, Peter Mullen, Katie Lyons, Shaun Evans.
Directed by John Crowley.
Already screened on British television, Boy received some more promotion by its inclusion in the Panorama section at the Berlinale. It is a strong, well-made film, directed by John Crowley (Intermission) with a screenplay by Mark O’Rowe? (who wrote Intermission) adapting a novel by Jonathan Trigell. Audiences familiar with the Jamie Bolger case in England, where two young boys killed a little boy will be thinking of parallels, especially the outcry when the two boys had served their terms and were released into the community with changed identities.
We first meet Boy A when he is released. No one knows who he is or what he has done. He does not make contact with his family. The person who helps him is a kindly parole officer who helps him with job interviews and accommodation. He tries to blend in but is awkward, lacks some social graces and tends to follow some of his rowdy co-workers. The screenplay is sympathetic is inviting us to think about the problems facing a person who has done the time for his crime.
But we still wonder what the crime is. The screenplay provides the answers is flashbacks inserted at different times throughout the film, a cumulative effect for when we really know what the crime was. By this stage, Boy A finds the pressures to heavy to deal with. The final part of the film challenges the audience to think what they would have done had they found out the truth about him. How many chances does he deserve?
The boy is played by Andrew Garfield who then went on to be directed as the young student in Lions for Lambs. Peter Mullan is the parole officer who has problems with his own son which then become tied into the tragedy of Boy A.
1.The impact of the drama, characters, social issues? The pessimistic perspective?
2.Britain, the cities, local areas, schools, homes, jail, digs for workers, factories? Authentic feel?
3.The film made for television, strong for home audiences, pace, editing, language, score?
4.The title, Eric and his formerly being Jack? The facts, the record, the revelations?
5.The structure of the film: the introduction to Jack, his parole officer, the situation, tensions and hopes, work, boarding, gradually meeting people, social graces and lack of them, relating, the law and dangers, settling down, the information, the media and its effect, the final notes, the boy's death?
6.The portrait of Eric/Jack? The cumulative effect, seeing him as an adult? Identifying with him as an adult? Building up the picture of him as a child and what he had done?
7.As a child, at home, awkward, the bullying, soft, his violent friend, the episodes, elaboration? Why the situation, the girl, her taunting, his following the leader, the bashing and killing? In court? The sentence?
8.The credibility of child-killers? The courts? The suicide and the grave?
9.The issue of responsibility, of children, adults, family? Jack's responsibility?
10.Jack and his change of name, awkward, with the landlady, at work, his friends at work, satisfaction in work and home, the detail? The bosses? His relationship to the parole officer, trusting him, the phone call, visiting the grave? The meals and the memories? With girls? The law, awkward, sex? The meeting?
11.The parole officer, his work, his own personal life, his tense relationship with his son? His character, neglecting his family? The clash? Telling him the information? Giving a motivation to the son?
12.The role of the tabloids, the reaction, the parole officer not being comfortable? The reaction of his mates, the girl? Going to Blackpool? Meeting her there? Jack and the attack of the tabloids, merited or not? Public opinion?
13.Jack travelling, going to Blackpool, the letters and the messages? His death?
14.The audience left to reflect on what they thought about child-killers and their responsibility, the guilt, the punishment, the possibilities of rehabilitation and a second chance? The culprits being hounded to death? The role of the media?
