Review of Fish Tank (2009) by Paul S — 30 Jan 2011

Back when I was 15 (in the Jurassic epoch) I was angry at just about everything, and I didn't have half the crap to put up with that Mia has to deal with in Fish Tank, the 2009 Cannes Jury Prize winner.

A coming of age story - not really; more of a coming to terms story. Coming to terms with her situation and the limited opportunities offered to a lower class Brit female. She dreams of escaping her alcoholic non caring mother by becoming a successful dancer; practicing in the privacy of a vacant apartment in the shoddily built government high rise she grew up in, while others with the same idea are flaunting their moves in front of the local boys. When she lashes out at them you wonder why, but it all comes full circle later; Mia instinctively understands the difference between dancing for art and dancing for money, as evidenced when she walks off stage before beginning her dance at a strip club audition.

The audition scene is the nexus point of her life. Mia realizes that her dream is simply that; only a dream, so she lowers her sights and settles for plan B - heading off to Wales with a 19 year old mechanic who has expressed an interest in her.

Along the way there is a wonderfully told story of Mia's attraction to one of her mother's beaus, who for a time shares the apartment with Mia's family. What takes place is given time to percolate, thanks to the excellent direction of Andrea Arnold, and the acting chops of Kate Jarvis as Mia, and Michael Fassbender as the boyfriend.

The film's editing could have been enhanced by some better fades, but overall the cinematography on display here is excellent - very up close and intimate when in the apartment, and seemingly distant and detached when outside - giving the viewer a vested interest in the story while sneaking in subliminal feelings of hopelessness. There are several very nice touches; from the almost continual gray skies around the apartment complex to the idyllic blue skies with white puffy clouds that frame the shots of a suburban enclave. A wonderful shot as Mia leaves the strip club audition, having the camera follow her past a multi mirrored wall reflecting back multiply images of her.

The final shots are also noteworthy. Mia looking back over her shoulder as the mechanic drives her away from the apartment building, her younger sister running after them and waving (symbolic of the younger sister also being trapped in the same predicament), and then a cut to the apartment building as a heart-shaped balloon rises above it.

Overall the film is less than perfect, as I felt that the early pacing was a bit slow, especially some of the solitary dancing scenes, but the film certainly held its commitment to its bleak vision and the twisted tale of Mia and her mom's boyfriend were so artfully executed and revealing in so many ways, that I must agree with the Cannes Jury.