Review of Bait

Bait (I) (2019)
7/10
Bait
10 February 2020
Warning: Spoilers
Film critic Mark Kermode described this film as not only his favourite of the last year, but of the decade, having read about and seen clips of it, and being a fan of experimental films, I was not going to miss it. Basically, in a picturesque Cornish village, Martin Ward (Edward Rowe) is a cove fisherman, without a boat. He struggles to make ends meet with his old-fashioned fishing technique, using net traps on the beach. Meanwhile, Martin's brother Steven (Giles King) uses their late father's vessel to offer cruise trips to visiting tourists. This re-purposing of the boat as a tourist tripper has caused a rift between the brothers. Also, their childhood home has become turned into a tourist spot for incomers. Martin struggles as he wants to return the family and their harbour home to a traditional place. Tensions soon arise between him and the visiting out-of-town Leigh family, husband/father Tim (Simon Shepherd) and wife/mother Sandra (Mary Woodvine) and their children, currently staying in 'Skipper's Cottage'. Using the home as a seasonal holiday home, they have also turned it into short-term rental business, as a B&B. It ends in tragedy with an accidental death at the heart of the family that changes everything. Also starring Isaac Woodvine as Neil Ward, Georgia Ellery as Katie Leigh, Jowan Jacobs as Hugo Leigh and Chloe Endean as Wenna Kowalski. The cast are all fine, and the deceptively simple story is just about worthwhile, I think to be honest though it is much more about the process that went into making this film. It was filmed using a vintage hand cranked Bolex camera, using 16mm monochrome film hand processed by director Mark Jenkin. This means the film was shot in silent, with natural lighting, and post-synchronised sound, it looks and sounds like a classic film from old cinema, it is a worthwhile drama. It won the BAFTA for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director, or Producer for Mark Jenkin, Linn Waite and Kate Byers, and it was nominated for Outstanding British Film of the Year. Very good!
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