Review of Broken (2012) by Jim L — 25 Jul 2013

This film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2012 and it is based on the 2008 novel of the same name written by Daniel Clay.

Broken is a lovely film where the story has been woven together with intricate detail, it is beautiful on many levels. The story is a British coming-of-age story about a girl named Skunk who is the centerpiece of this multidimensional movie, and somewhat complicated piecing together of the telling of this story. The director (Rufus Norris) does a brilliant job at balancing the comic and tragic elements of the book, and weaves an interesting tale throughout the entire 90-minutes.

The cast does such an remarkable job dropping right into the story from the first frame, and they all connect with the viewer in a way to remove the barriers that could become a problem in a film like this. This movie will appeal to adults and teens alike as the intense drama is underplayed and though there is a dark undertone throughout the film, the viewer is easily brought into the story and can't let go until the credits roll.

The film has some well-known faces, such as Tim Roth and Cillian Murphy (who can also play a good guy, not just a villain), but this isn't the last time we will see the name Eloise Laurence on the silver screen. Eloise was brilliant, and deserves recognition for her amazing contribution to this movie.

I strongly recommend this movie; it is one of the best of the year!