Review of The Neon Bible (1995) by Reece L — 08 Oct 2015

For better or worse, The Neon Bible is yet another trip into the childhood of Terence Davies. Although this is a literary adaptation, the story is so similar to his previous work (cruel father, childhood bullying, idealized mother figures, abusive nature of religion) that the film he's made out of the source material is nearly identical to the three that preceded it.

Unfortunately, it pales by comparison due to a couple of stilted performance, but given that it's a Davies film there are several elements that work wonderfully, particularly his signature stylistic flourishes (an emphasis on windows, symmetrical shots, dream-like movement between scenes, poignantly romantic imagery).

While not his best film, there's still enough here to qualify The Neon Bible as a solid reiteration of Davies' previous work that stands on its own, albeit in a less compelling fashion.