Review of Submarine (2011) by Martin I — 15 Nov 2011

A sweet story that stays away from cheap laughs makes a big feather in the cap of Ayoade as a director.

Coming of age tales are as overdone as any other genre of film, so getting it right is a challenge. Ayoade succeeds admirably by steering away from easy laughs; helped by the source material (the novel by Joe Dunthorne) from which he adapted the screenplay, and focusing on more sweet and heart-warming aspects.

The quirky humour is delivered with aplomb through great turns by Hawkins, Taylor and Considine; who are all fantastic. They all provide great support to the story and the cringe educing humour of Oliver (Craig Roberts) struggle to win the girl of his dreams and keep his parent's crumbling marriage together. The dry, cool screenplay draws in US indie sensibilities with a quirky self-deprecating British charm; allowing you to really feel for the central character, no matter how self-obsessed he might be.

With great music to cap it all off, Ayoade has launched himself into feature films with a fantastic debut. It's sweet, warm and funny without ever dipping into insipid mush. A real treat.