The BBC adaptation of Ian Rankin’s Rebus will premiere on the 18th May, with Richard Rankin (no relation) in the lead role.
A new adaptation of Ian Rankin’s detective novels, Rebus, is set to air later this month. Gregory Burke, who previously wrote Scottish drama Six Four, wrote all six episodes, which were directed by Niall MacCormick and Fiona Walton.
The new series of Rebus will be a prequel which focuses on the detective in his younger years, as he rises up the ranks in Edinburgh.
Richard Rankin (no relation to author Ian) stars as Rebus, alongside Lucie Shorthouse, Brian Ferguson, Amy Manson, Neshla Caplan, Noof Ousellam, Stuart Bowman, Caroline Lee Johnson, Sean Buchanan, Thoren Ferguson and Michelle Duncan.
The synopsis reads as follows:
Set in Edinburgh, the six-part series reimagines John Rebus as a younger Detective Sergeant drawn into a violent criminal conflict that turns personal when his brother Michael,...
A new adaptation of Ian Rankin’s detective novels, Rebus, is set to air later this month. Gregory Burke, who previously wrote Scottish drama Six Four, wrote all six episodes, which were directed by Niall MacCormick and Fiona Walton.
The new series of Rebus will be a prequel which focuses on the detective in his younger years, as he rises up the ranks in Edinburgh.
Richard Rankin (no relation to author Ian) stars as Rebus, alongside Lucie Shorthouse, Brian Ferguson, Amy Manson, Neshla Caplan, Noof Ousellam, Stuart Bowman, Caroline Lee Johnson, Sean Buchanan, Thoren Ferguson and Michelle Duncan.
The synopsis reads as follows:
Set in Edinburgh, the six-part series reimagines John Rebus as a younger Detective Sergeant drawn into a violent criminal conflict that turns personal when his brother Michael,...
- 5/2/2024
- by Jake Godfrey
- Film Stories
Ian Rankin’s iconic detective Rebus is heading back to the small screen. Here’s what we know about the new series…
Ian Rankin’s Rebus is one of the most successful characters in contemporary fiction. Appearing in over 24 novels since 1987, with the 25th, Midnight & Blue, set to be published in October, and over a dozen short stories, Rankin’s dour detective has made an indelible impression on readers the world over.
It wasn’t long before he made his way to the screen. The first iteration starred John Hannah, who played the role for one series in 2000 to 2001. Hannah was unpopular with fans of the books, and he quit the role soon after.
For three series, Ken Stott stepped into the role of the detective. His portrayal was extremely popular, and he became inextricably linked with the role, so much so it has taken well over a decade for...
Ian Rankin’s Rebus is one of the most successful characters in contemporary fiction. Appearing in over 24 novels since 1987, with the 25th, Midnight & Blue, set to be published in October, and over a dozen short stories, Rankin’s dour detective has made an indelible impression on readers the world over.
It wasn’t long before he made his way to the screen. The first iteration starred John Hannah, who played the role for one series in 2000 to 2001. Hannah was unpopular with fans of the books, and he quit the role soon after.
For three series, Ken Stott stepped into the role of the detective. His portrayal was extremely popular, and he became inextricably linked with the role, so much so it has taken well over a decade for...
- 3/7/2024
- by Jake Godfrey
- Film Stories
The BBC has acquired crime drama series Rebus, a new adaptation of the best-selling Inspector Rebus novels by Scottish author Ian Rankin, starring Richard Rankin (Outlander, The Replacement) in the lead role.
Adapted for the small screen by Gregory Burke (´71, Six Four) and produced by Eleventh Hour Films for Nordic streamer Viaplay, the six-part series will air on the U.K. public broadcaster’s flagship network BBC One, BBC Scotland and streamer BBC iPlayer this spring.
Rebus has been seen on the screen and stage before. An ITV series ran for four seasons from 2000 until 2007. The fictional inspector has also been featured in radio and theater adaptations.
The show features a younger, and recently divorced and demoted, protagonist. Set in Edinburgh, it “reimagines John Rebus as a younger Detective Sergeant drawn into a violent criminal conflict that turns personal when his brother Michael, a former soldier, crosses the line into criminality,...
Adapted for the small screen by Gregory Burke (´71, Six Four) and produced by Eleventh Hour Films for Nordic streamer Viaplay, the six-part series will air on the U.K. public broadcaster’s flagship network BBC One, BBC Scotland and streamer BBC iPlayer this spring.
Rebus has been seen on the screen and stage before. An ITV series ran for four seasons from 2000 until 2007. The fictional inspector has also been featured in radio and theater adaptations.
The show features a younger, and recently divorced and demoted, protagonist. Set in Edinburgh, it “reimagines John Rebus as a younger Detective Sergeant drawn into a violent criminal conflict that turns personal when his brother Michael, a former soldier, crosses the line into criminality,...
- 3/7/2024
- by Georg Szalai
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Verve picks up UK rights to Scott Graham’s Shell follow-up.
Verve Pictures has acquired UK rights to Scott Graham’s Shell follow-up Iona, which will get its world premiere as the closing night film of the Edinburgh Film Festival.
Iona follows a young woman and her teenage son who flee Glasgow seeking refuge from a violent crime.
Ruth Negga, Douglas Henshall, Michelle Duncan, Tom Brooke, Ben Gallagher and Sorcha Groundsell star in the film which is a BFI and Creative Scotland presentation.
The Bard Entertainments production was made in association with Boudica Silver and co-produced with Hanfgarn & Ufer and Zdf in co-operation with Arte.
Colin Burch, managing director of Verve Pictures commented: “We are delighted to be releasing ‘Iona’ and to be working again with Scott Graham and Margaret Matheson. Iona is a wonderful film that fulfills the great promise shown in Shell”.
Verve Pictures has acquired UK rights to Scott Graham’s Shell follow-up Iona, which will get its world premiere as the closing night film of the Edinburgh Film Festival.
Iona follows a young woman and her teenage son who flee Glasgow seeking refuge from a violent crime.
Ruth Negga, Douglas Henshall, Michelle Duncan, Tom Brooke, Ben Gallagher and Sorcha Groundsell star in the film which is a BFI and Creative Scotland presentation.
The Bard Entertainments production was made in association with Boudica Silver and co-produced with Hanfgarn & Ufer and Zdf in co-operation with Arte.
Colin Burch, managing director of Verve Pictures commented: “We are delighted to be releasing ‘Iona’ and to be working again with Scott Graham and Margaret Matheson. Iona is a wonderful film that fulfills the great promise shown in Shell”.
- 6/19/2015
- by andreas.wiseman@screendaily.com (Andreas Wiseman)
- ScreenDaily
Scott Graham’s drama stars Ruth Negga of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
The 69th Edinburgh International Film Festival (Eiff) is to close with the world premiere of Scott Graham’s Iona on June 28 at the Festival Theatre Edinburgh.
Shot entirely on location in Scotland, the film stars Ruth Negga (Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D), Douglas Henshall (Shetland), Tom Brooke (The Boat That Rocked) and Michelle Duncan (Atonement), with debuts by two Scottish actors, Ben Gallagher and Sorcha Groundsell.
Iona is director Graham’s second film following his award winning Shell in 2012.
Graham said: ‘I discovered many films and filmmakers at the Edinburgh International Film Festival. Edinburgh was my home all through my twenties and it was in venues like Filmhouse and the Cameo where I learned the value of the stories we tell and the emotions we share.
“I’m thrilled Iona will have its premiere here and doubly thrilled it will...
The 69th Edinburgh International Film Festival (Eiff) is to close with the world premiere of Scott Graham’s Iona on June 28 at the Festival Theatre Edinburgh.
Shot entirely on location in Scotland, the film stars Ruth Negga (Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D), Douglas Henshall (Shetland), Tom Brooke (The Boat That Rocked) and Michelle Duncan (Atonement), with debuts by two Scottish actors, Ben Gallagher and Sorcha Groundsell.
Iona is director Graham’s second film following his award winning Shell in 2012.
Graham said: ‘I discovered many films and filmmakers at the Edinburgh International Film Festival. Edinburgh was my home all through my twenties and it was in venues like Filmhouse and the Cameo where I learned the value of the stories we tell and the emotions we share.
“I’m thrilled Iona will have its premiere here and doubly thrilled it will...
- 5/11/2015
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
A woman returns to the island that is her namesake with her teenage son in Iona - which will close Eiff 2015 Photo: Courtesy of Eiff Scott Graham’s Iona has been announced as the closing film of the 69th edition of Edinburgh Film Festival on Sunday June 28 at the Festival Theatre Edinburgh, where it will receive its world premiere.
Shell director Graham's second feature is described as "part coming-of-age story and part returning-home drama", that tells the story of Iona - returning to the Island where she was born (and after which she was named) with her teenage son Bull to seek refuge from a violent crime in Glasgow. Iona's return exposes Bull to a way of life she rejected when she left the island as a teenager and sends a shockwave through her family.
Shot entirely on location in Scotland, the film stars Ruth Negga (Marvel’s Agents of S.
Shell director Graham's second feature is described as "part coming-of-age story and part returning-home drama", that tells the story of Iona - returning to the Island where she was born (and after which she was named) with her teenage son Bull to seek refuge from a violent crime in Glasgow. Iona's return exposes Bull to a way of life she rejected when she left the island as a teenager and sends a shockwave through her family.
Shot entirely on location in Scotland, the film stars Ruth Negga (Marvel’s Agents of S.
- 5/11/2015
- by Amber Wilkinson
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
It was a brutal Winter (of our discontent), but it's finally Spring and there's plenty of new music to thaw even the most solid block of plowed snow. Here are ten of my favorite new rock/pop/dance/funk/folk tunes. Let us begin with this tremendous track (and album) from one of my favorite folk-rock singer/songwriters, the former New Yorker and now L.A.-based David Poe. Here he shares his muse on his debut single "When I Fly" from his soon-to-be-released long player When I Fly. Check him out on tour, too.
Nsfw aside, the "Leeches" video -- directed by Jessica Lauretti of the band This Frontier Needs Heroes -- is just one of the infectious tracks from the Shoulders album released by the terrifically talented singer/songwriter/composer Pt Walkley, who just happens to hail from NYC. So there.
Real Estate has released one of the...
Nsfw aside, the "Leeches" video -- directed by Jessica Lauretti of the band This Frontier Needs Heroes -- is just one of the infectious tracks from the Shoulders album released by the terrifically talented singer/songwriter/composer Pt Walkley, who just happens to hail from NYC. So there.
Real Estate has released one of the...
- 4/4/2014
- by Dusty Wright
- www.culturecatch.com
When Doctor Who returned to TV screens in the mid 2000s, the official BBC website ran a recurring feature called The Fear Factor. What happened was that a family of kiddywinks would preview the upcoming adventure and rate it from one to five as to how terrifying it was (1 = Harmless; 5 = Shit Your Pants). When it came to Tooth And Claw, the kids were suitably quaking at an episode that was touted as the scariest to date for the 21st century revival.
Now the scare factor in the reboot of Doctor Who has been a bit of a bone of contention. Some will argue that it's nowhere near as scary as what had gone before: The late '60s stories paraded scary monsters week in week out; The early '70s went close to the knuckle with blank-faced dummies, killer dolls and suffocating chairs; The mid-70s stories contained regular haunted...
Now the scare factor in the reboot of Doctor Who has been a bit of a bone of contention. Some will argue that it's nowhere near as scary as what had gone before: The late '60s stories paraded scary monsters week in week out; The early '70s went close to the knuckle with blank-faced dummies, killer dolls and suffocating chairs; The mid-70s stories contained regular haunted...
- 5/30/2011
- Shadowlocked
Chicago – Lionsgate and After Dark Films’ recently released their third collection of “8 Films to Die For” and this year proved to be the most uninspiring octet to date. With fewer risks taken than the last two years and less extreme failures or successes, “After Dark Horrorfest III” is terrifyingly dull.
Overall DVD Rating: 2.0/5.0 What makes this year’s collection rather forgettable is the lack of extremes on either side of the rating spectrum. The first two years produced some truly excellent genre gems including “Borderland,” “The Hamiltons,” and “The Abandoned.” At the same time, movies like “Dead Lake,” “Undead,” and “Nightmare Man” should be buried in a deep hole and never see the light of day again.
I have to admit that I liked the variety in quality of the last two years more than this year, when nearly every film registered as forgettable more than good or bad. There was one notable standout,...
Overall DVD Rating: 2.0/5.0 What makes this year’s collection rather forgettable is the lack of extremes on either side of the rating spectrum. The first two years produced some truly excellent genre gems including “Borderland,” “The Hamiltons,” and “The Abandoned.” At the same time, movies like “Dead Lake,” “Undead,” and “Nightmare Man” should be buried in a deep hole and never see the light of day again.
I have to admit that I liked the variety in quality of the last two years more than this year, when nearly every film registered as forgettable more than good or bad. There was one notable standout,...
- 4/23/2009
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Rupert Grint becomes the first "Harry Potter" principal to enter big-screen brink-of-adulthood, not with a leap but on tiptoe. "Driving Lessons", a sort of "Harold and Maude" without the sex, pairs him with Julie Walters in the role of a soulful but buttoned-down adolescent who meets his match in a grotesquely eccentric retired actress. Aiming for wacky and heartwarming, the film is, at its sporadic best, a mildly diverting coming-of-age story. At its worst, it feels forced. U.S. audiences partial to this kind of quirky but conventional British export and those curious to see Grint playing someone other than Ron Weasley will take a look.
Ostensibly character-driven, the film offers little real character development. A dual dynamic is perhaps its most interesting aspect. There's the obvious contrast between the characters played by Walters and Grint and the somewhat more fascinating juxtaposition of two levels of acting experience. As Walters effortlessly inhabits the scenery-devouring role of a self-anointed "dame," Grint is mostly reactive, relying on a glum but affecting charm. Under the helm of first-time director Jeremy Brock ("Mrs. Brown", "Charlotte Gray" and co-scripting duties on "The Last King of Scotland"), they are both performances of mixed success and limited depth, while a miscast Laura Linney is unconvincing in a thankless role.
Linney plays the overbearing do-gooder mother of quiet, poetry-writing Ben (Grint). The 17-year-old faces a bleak summer of driving lessons from his mother that are as half-hearted as Linney's English accent. He suffers through strained dinner-table interludes with his ineffectual vicar father (Robert Farrell) and Mr. Fincham (Jim Norton), an elderly gent Mum has taken in because he recently ran over his wife and she likes to "help people." Urged to contribute to the cause by getting a job, Ben answers an ad placed by the exuberant and cranky one-time actress Evie (Walters), and for £6 an hour becomes her assistant.
Drawing loosely upon his experience working for actress Peggy Ashcroft, Brock fashions an overly schematic scenario. While Ben's mother is directing rehearsals for a play on Christ's miracles, Ben joins Evie in her garden for an impassioned reading of "Coriolanus". Repulsed and delighted by Evie's foul-mouthed tantrums, he is drawn deeper into the cluttered memorabilia of her house and the life it represents (kudos to production designer Amanda McArthur).
By the time Evie cooks up a camping trip for them, the line is clearly drawn between Ben's tight-lipped mother and the outsize Evie, who isn't above swallowing a car key to get her way. Evie is meant to be maddening and manipulative, but Brock probably didn't intend that she be as annoying a character as Ben's joyless, controlling mother. Yet because she functions as the instrument of Ben's liberation, we're supposed to appreciate her excess.
After a lot of dramatic idling, "Driving Lessons" clicks into gear when it turns into a road trip north to the Edinburgh Festival, where Evie will give a reading, her first public performance in years. On the open road, out of the confined web of traffic circles and familial pressures, Ben grows more assured behind the wheel and the film gathers some energy, with glimpses of the Scottish capital lending a nice flavor.
The trip turns disastrous for Evie and revelatory for Ben, who is seduced by a twentysomething local lass (Michelle Duncan). From there, "Driving Lessons" settles into formulaic ruts before a bizarre and fitfully delirious collision of the secular and Christian, real life and the stage. But it's too little too late on what has been a decidedly middle-of-the-road journey.
DRIVING LESSONS
Sony Pictures Classics
A U.K. Film Council and ContentFilm presentation of a Rubber Tree Plant production
Credits:
Director-screenwriter: Jeremy Brock
Producer: Julia Chasman
Executive producers: Edward R. Pressman, Alessandro Camon
Director of photography: David Katznelson
Production designer: Amanda McArthur
Music: Clive Carroll, John Renbourn
Co-producer: Alexandra Ferguson
Costume designer: Robin Fraser-Paye
Editor: Trevor Waite
Cast:
Evie: Julie Walters
Ben: Rupert Grint
Laura: Laura Linney
Robert: Nicholas Farrell
Peter: Oliver Milburn
Bryony: Michelle Duncan
Mr. Fincham: Jim Norton
Sarah: Tamsin Egerton
Running time -- 98 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
Ostensibly character-driven, the film offers little real character development. A dual dynamic is perhaps its most interesting aspect. There's the obvious contrast between the characters played by Walters and Grint and the somewhat more fascinating juxtaposition of two levels of acting experience. As Walters effortlessly inhabits the scenery-devouring role of a self-anointed "dame," Grint is mostly reactive, relying on a glum but affecting charm. Under the helm of first-time director Jeremy Brock ("Mrs. Brown", "Charlotte Gray" and co-scripting duties on "The Last King of Scotland"), they are both performances of mixed success and limited depth, while a miscast Laura Linney is unconvincing in a thankless role.
Linney plays the overbearing do-gooder mother of quiet, poetry-writing Ben (Grint). The 17-year-old faces a bleak summer of driving lessons from his mother that are as half-hearted as Linney's English accent. He suffers through strained dinner-table interludes with his ineffectual vicar father (Robert Farrell) and Mr. Fincham (Jim Norton), an elderly gent Mum has taken in because he recently ran over his wife and she likes to "help people." Urged to contribute to the cause by getting a job, Ben answers an ad placed by the exuberant and cranky one-time actress Evie (Walters), and for £6 an hour becomes her assistant.
Drawing loosely upon his experience working for actress Peggy Ashcroft, Brock fashions an overly schematic scenario. While Ben's mother is directing rehearsals for a play on Christ's miracles, Ben joins Evie in her garden for an impassioned reading of "Coriolanus". Repulsed and delighted by Evie's foul-mouthed tantrums, he is drawn deeper into the cluttered memorabilia of her house and the life it represents (kudos to production designer Amanda McArthur).
By the time Evie cooks up a camping trip for them, the line is clearly drawn between Ben's tight-lipped mother and the outsize Evie, who isn't above swallowing a car key to get her way. Evie is meant to be maddening and manipulative, but Brock probably didn't intend that she be as annoying a character as Ben's joyless, controlling mother. Yet because she functions as the instrument of Ben's liberation, we're supposed to appreciate her excess.
After a lot of dramatic idling, "Driving Lessons" clicks into gear when it turns into a road trip north to the Edinburgh Festival, where Evie will give a reading, her first public performance in years. On the open road, out of the confined web of traffic circles and familial pressures, Ben grows more assured behind the wheel and the film gathers some energy, with glimpses of the Scottish capital lending a nice flavor.
The trip turns disastrous for Evie and revelatory for Ben, who is seduced by a twentysomething local lass (Michelle Duncan). From there, "Driving Lessons" settles into formulaic ruts before a bizarre and fitfully delirious collision of the secular and Christian, real life and the stage. But it's too little too late on what has been a decidedly middle-of-the-road journey.
DRIVING LESSONS
Sony Pictures Classics
A U.K. Film Council and ContentFilm presentation of a Rubber Tree Plant production
Credits:
Director-screenwriter: Jeremy Brock
Producer: Julia Chasman
Executive producers: Edward R. Pressman, Alessandro Camon
Director of photography: David Katznelson
Production designer: Amanda McArthur
Music: Clive Carroll, John Renbourn
Co-producer: Alexandra Ferguson
Costume designer: Robin Fraser-Paye
Editor: Trevor Waite
Cast:
Evie: Julie Walters
Ben: Rupert Grint
Laura: Laura Linney
Robert: Nicholas Farrell
Peter: Oliver Milburn
Bryony: Michelle Duncan
Mr. Fincham: Jim Norton
Sarah: Tamsin Egerton
Running time -- 98 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
- 10/14/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Rupert Grint becomes the first Harry Potter principal to enter big-screen brink-of-adulthood, not with a leap but on tiptoe. Driving Lessons, a sort of Harold and Maude without the sex, pairs him with Julie Walters in the role of a soulful but buttoned-down adolescent who meets his match in a grotesquely eccentric retired actress. Aiming for wacky and heartwarming, the film is, at its sporadic best, a mildly diverting coming-of-age story. At its worst, it feels forced. U.S. audiences partial to this kind of quirky but conventional British export and those curious to see Grint playing someone other than Ron Weasley will take a look.
Ostensibly character-driven, the film offers little real character development. A dual dynamic is perhaps its most interesting aspect. There's the obvious contrast between the characters played by Walters and Grint and the somewhat more fascinating juxtaposition of two levels of acting experience. As Walters effortlessly inhabits the scenery-devouring role of a self-anointed "dame," Grint is mostly reactive, relying on a glum but affecting charm. Under the helm of first-time director Jeremy Brock (Mrs. Brown, Charlotte Gray and co-scripting duties on The Last King of Scotland), they are both performances of mixed success and limited depth, while a miscast Laura Linney is unconvincing in a thankless role.
Linney plays the overbearing do-gooder mother of quiet, poetry-writing Ben (Grint). The 17-year-old faces a bleak summer of driving lessons from his mother that are as half-hearted as Linney's English accent. He suffers through strained dinner-table interludes with his ineffectual vicar father (Robert Farrell) and Mr. Fincham (Jim Norton), an elderly gent Mum has taken in because he recently ran over his wife and she likes to "help people." Urged to contribute to the cause by getting a job, Ben answers an ad placed by the exuberant and cranky one-time actress Evie (Walters), and for £6 an hour becomes her assistant.
Drawing loosely upon his experience working for actress Peggy Ashcroft, Brock fashions an overly schematic scenario. While Ben's mother is directing rehearsals for a play on Christ's miracles, Ben joins Evie in her garden for an impassioned reading of Coriolanus. Repulsed and delighted by Evie's foul-mouthed tantrums, he is drawn deeper into the cluttered memorabilia of her house and the life it represents (kudos to production designer Amanda McArthur).
By the time Evie cooks up a camping trip for them, the line is clearly drawn between Ben's tight-lipped mother and the outsize Evie, who isn't above swallowing a car key to get her way. Evie is meant to be maddening and manipulative, but Brock probably didn't intend that she be as annoying a character as Ben's joyless, controlling mother. Yet because she functions as the instrument of Ben's liberation, we're supposed to appreciate her excess.
After a lot of dramatic idling, Driving Lessons clicks into gear when it turns into a road trip north to the Edinburgh Festival, where Evie will give a reading, her first public performance in years. On the open road, out of the confined web of traffic circles and familial pressures, Ben grows more assured behind the wheel and the film gathers some energy, with glimpses of the Scottish capital lending a nice flavor.
The trip turns disastrous for Evie and revelatory for Ben, who is seduced by a twentysomething local lass (Michelle Duncan). From there, Driving Lessons settles into formulaic ruts before a bizarre and fitfully delirious collision of the secular and Christian, real life and the stage. But it's too little too late on what has been a decidedly middle-of-the-road journey.
DRIVING LESSONS
Sony Pictures Classics
A U.K. Film Council and ContentFilm presentation of a Rubber Tree Plant production
Credits:
Director-screenwriter: Jeremy Brock
Producer: Julia Chasman
Executive producers: Edward R. Pressman, Alessandro Camon
Director of photography: David Katznelson
Production designer: Amanda McArthur
Music: Clive Carroll, John Renbourn
Co-producer: Alexandra Ferguson
Costume designer: Robin Fraser-Paye
Editor: Trevor Waite
Cast:
Evie: Julie Walters
Ben: Rupert Grint
Laura: Laura Linney
Robert: Nicholas Farrell
Peter: Oliver Milburn
Bryony: Michelle Duncan
Mr. Fincham: Jim Norton
Sarah: Tamsin Egerton
Running time -- 98 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
Ostensibly character-driven, the film offers little real character development. A dual dynamic is perhaps its most interesting aspect. There's the obvious contrast between the characters played by Walters and Grint and the somewhat more fascinating juxtaposition of two levels of acting experience. As Walters effortlessly inhabits the scenery-devouring role of a self-anointed "dame," Grint is mostly reactive, relying on a glum but affecting charm. Under the helm of first-time director Jeremy Brock (Mrs. Brown, Charlotte Gray and co-scripting duties on The Last King of Scotland), they are both performances of mixed success and limited depth, while a miscast Laura Linney is unconvincing in a thankless role.
Linney plays the overbearing do-gooder mother of quiet, poetry-writing Ben (Grint). The 17-year-old faces a bleak summer of driving lessons from his mother that are as half-hearted as Linney's English accent. He suffers through strained dinner-table interludes with his ineffectual vicar father (Robert Farrell) and Mr. Fincham (Jim Norton), an elderly gent Mum has taken in because he recently ran over his wife and she likes to "help people." Urged to contribute to the cause by getting a job, Ben answers an ad placed by the exuberant and cranky one-time actress Evie (Walters), and for £6 an hour becomes her assistant.
Drawing loosely upon his experience working for actress Peggy Ashcroft, Brock fashions an overly schematic scenario. While Ben's mother is directing rehearsals for a play on Christ's miracles, Ben joins Evie in her garden for an impassioned reading of Coriolanus. Repulsed and delighted by Evie's foul-mouthed tantrums, he is drawn deeper into the cluttered memorabilia of her house and the life it represents (kudos to production designer Amanda McArthur).
By the time Evie cooks up a camping trip for them, the line is clearly drawn between Ben's tight-lipped mother and the outsize Evie, who isn't above swallowing a car key to get her way. Evie is meant to be maddening and manipulative, but Brock probably didn't intend that she be as annoying a character as Ben's joyless, controlling mother. Yet because she functions as the instrument of Ben's liberation, we're supposed to appreciate her excess.
After a lot of dramatic idling, Driving Lessons clicks into gear when it turns into a road trip north to the Edinburgh Festival, where Evie will give a reading, her first public performance in years. On the open road, out of the confined web of traffic circles and familial pressures, Ben grows more assured behind the wheel and the film gathers some energy, with glimpses of the Scottish capital lending a nice flavor.
The trip turns disastrous for Evie and revelatory for Ben, who is seduced by a twentysomething local lass (Michelle Duncan). From there, Driving Lessons settles into formulaic ruts before a bizarre and fitfully delirious collision of the secular and Christian, real life and the stage. But it's too little too late on what has been a decidedly middle-of-the-road journey.
DRIVING LESSONS
Sony Pictures Classics
A U.K. Film Council and ContentFilm presentation of a Rubber Tree Plant production
Credits:
Director-screenwriter: Jeremy Brock
Producer: Julia Chasman
Executive producers: Edward R. Pressman, Alessandro Camon
Director of photography: David Katznelson
Production designer: Amanda McArthur
Music: Clive Carroll, John Renbourn
Co-producer: Alexandra Ferguson
Costume designer: Robin Fraser-Paye
Editor: Trevor Waite
Cast:
Evie: Julie Walters
Ben: Rupert Grint
Laura: Laura Linney
Robert: Nicholas Farrell
Peter: Oliver Milburn
Bryony: Michelle Duncan
Mr. Fincham: Jim Norton
Sarah: Tamsin Egerton
Running time -- 98 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
- 10/13/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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