filmbore pick of the week - What Richard Did

What Richard Did

Director: Lenny Abrahamson
Screenplay: Malcolm Campbell
Starring: Jack Reynor, Roisin Murphy, Lars Mikkelsen, Sam Keeley
Year: 2012
Language: English
UK rental release: April 2013

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Back in the UK last week, now skipping over the water to our neighbours in Ireland. We may be on different soil this time round, but we're keeping to real drama in the excellent Irish indie, What Richard Did. 

We open on three guys in a car. Our driver, Richard (Jack Reynor, Dollhouse) is joshing with his passenger friends - they all seem like a normal bunch of lads. A bit of a character, and captain of the local rugby team, Richard is the alpha male of his clan. Not in any kind of brash, cocky, controlling way mind you but in a cool, laid-back, respecting manner.

 

It's the summer between school and university and they want to celebrate. They set off to the beach house that Richard's family own to start welcoming in the break and a new phase in their life. At the beach, Richard has his eyes on a girl. He looks on longingly, until braving an approach. On meeting Lara (Roisin Murphy, of Misfits - TV series fame) there's clearly some chemistry between them. Nevertheless, she is there with her own man, Conor (Sam Keeley, This Must Be The Place) who's a fellow team mate of Richard's.

They are all invited to Conor's 18th birthday party. On the night itself, Conor is far too wasted to carry on needs to go home. This give Richard the opportunity to seduce Lara. They begin an exciting new relationship, to the heartbreaking detriment of Conor's own feelings. Yet, as their love story unravels, paranoia starts to slip in, and Richard starts to question the strength in their new pairing.

Another summer party summons the gang, but Richard is getting increasingly troubled with Lara's attitude around other men, especially when near to Conor. Tension builds further after he nips outside for some air and can't get back in to the house. Later at the same party, when Richard is reunited with Lara, an unexpected event results in a catastrophic outcome, and starts to send Richard down an unexpected path.

In trying to cover his tracks, his friends, even Lara, want nothing to do with him. He has no choice but to enter a new realm of being since the incident...at a time where he is supposed to figure out what type of man he is going to become.

 

Loosely based on Kevin Power's book "Bad Day In Blackrock", What Richard Did was the most successful movie in Ireland throughout 2012. This is a lot to live up to, I know, but I was thoroughly impressed with the confident and temperate nature of the piece. It starts with a calm, patient pace, as both our leads start to fall for each other, unaware of the impending dilemma about to face them.

This wouldn't have been realised without the performers at hand, and the predominantly young cast are terrific; natural in each other's company & flawless in their own realism. This is a real actors film. Even the smaller roles are handled with deft attention to detail, and all of the leads are sensational. There's not a bad thesp in the entire picture! 

But at the centre of it all is Jack Reynor, who brings tension and brutal emotional agony with an untainted, delicate delivery. He's the key of nearly every scene of the movie. Without giving to much away, Reynor's transformation through the tale of Richard is astounding. He is effectively the same person throughout, but there is a maturity and steeliness that develops just under the surface. His inner turmoil just seeps through the surface - just enough to keep you guessing in his next actions. Shame. Paranoia. Guilt. Fear...all bundled up in a subtle portrayal by Reynor, while not forgetting how electric he is in other moments.

A key central scene that demonstrates this is of a touching discussion between Richard and his father, Peter (Lars Mikkelson, Flame and Citron), which is truly striking. The performances from the two men in this heartbreaking moment, as Peter starts to digest what his son bears on him, grabs you right in the gut, shaping the rest of the picture.

This opens the window into the mind of young men when their world is overturned in a heartbeat. It makes you aware of how you might act in this situation. Richard's relaxed but protected demeanour may be guarded enough but has the potential for destructive outcomes further down the dark path, both internally and externally. Whether you rely on instinct, gut feeling or reason, what would be the right choice of action? Paired with this, it taps into the regularly attempted thematic routes of cause and effect, and of how we are victims to our own blind decisions and their consequences. Yet, thankfully, this thesis is progressed through the conduit of truism as opposed to the usual spiritualist take on fate and destiny.

It also questions motive: motive to do what's right against motive to protect yourself and those close to you - especially when you are the cause of pain and loss. Through this angle it addresses the humanity ripped open for attack when bearing responsibility. It doesn't ignore how heavy burdens can wear you down, while beautifully illustrating that exposing weaknesses in your stamina actually reveals strength of judgement when you least expect it.

Through these events, as Richard slowly morphs, so does the overall vibe of the piece through the cinematic techniques used. With a combination of locked off shots and Steadicam, which jerk and swoop with a little more intensity as the tale unfolds, there's a noticeable template to the whole look of the picture.

Natural outdoor light is used to it's advantage, with some subtle manipulations in some of the closer shots, casting profiles subtly to create a template for the whole look of the film. With some wonderfully pleasant use of lens flares off the looming sunlight in parts, an altogether ambient palette coats all of the scenes across the entire picture.

The combination of docu-feel shots. south Dublin locales and natural lighting give the whole piece a crisp motif. There's a purity to the film; untwisted by the invasion of sensationalism. The gentle but penetrating approach to the source material is clear-cut and engulfing...and I can't see how it could have been made any other way!

I fear that What Richard Did will become one of those hidden gems that unfortunately stays hidden. A lack of promotion could render it invisible to most viewers, yet of a lot of the films I review I see this as one of the most approachable I've written about in ages. It taps into animalistic tendencies and moral groundings with a tender hand, and will reach into anyone who might chance upon it on a random late-night movie festival. The alternative? Watch it by choice, and do the right thing and tell your friends!  

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