Escaping one’s past is something that’s easy in theory, difficult in practice. Reinvention, or at least a good disguise, is something characters in movies always try to escape their past and it always manages to come back to haunt them. It’s a genre that has seen some fine character development over the years, and the latest entry into the genre is the British drama Boy A.
Jack (Andrew Garfield) committed a horrible crime as a young boy. Christened as “Boy A” during the trial, he serves his time and is secretly released into the general population. Living with the guilt of an unspeakable crime, Jack tries to live his life as a normal person with a job and a girlfriend. But with guilt weighing on his mind, he tries to live his life but keeps coming back to the same problems.
It makes for an interesting film, as it’s defined by Garfield’s performance. As a man conflicted with the guilt of a horrific crime, Jack is a man trying to live his life but can’t get over what he’s done, trying to hide from it while simultaneously trying to come to grips with it. Garfield, whose other high profile exposure was in Lions for Lambs, shows that perhaps his acting chops were a bit underused in the Redford-helmed flick as he carries the film for the most part. Jack now is a very nice, gentle man and it’s hard to see him as the violent killer his youth counterpart became. Jack wants to move on with his life but his guilt is overwhelming; it’s not sappy melodrama but genuine, emotional hurt. This is a man who is trying to accept who and what he is in a world that seemingly won’t let him.
There’s a tinge of the concept of forgiveness in the film, as it’s mainly about a man trying to find redemption in a world that isn’t offering any. As we see Jack lose everything when the truth comes out, it becomes sad because we can’t associate the good man of now with the momentary transgression of his youth. Garfield makes us like the man and his sad finale is heart breaking because of it.
Boy A had a limited run in theatres but is the sort of film perfect for discovery onto DVD.
Presented in a widescreen format with a Dolby digital surround, the film has a solid but not spectacular transfer. This isn’t a film of wondrous images or spectacular sound and the transfer doesn’t really take advantage of a top flight system. For those who haven’t invested in a top system, you won’t notice much of a difference.
None.
In terms of being an overall DVD package, Boy A is lacking in anything substantive. It’s a better rental than purchase, as the film itself is good but there isn’t anything on the DVD itself to justify the purchase other than the film itself.
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Miriam Collection presents Boy A. Directed by John Crowley. Starring Andrew Garfield, Katie Lyons, Alfie Owen. Written by Jonathan Trigell (novel) and Mark O’Rowe (screenplay). Running time: 100 minutes. Rated R. Released on DVD: 10.7.2008. Available at Amazon.com.
