Gosh the eighties in Britain looked pretty grim in this darkly shot atmospheric vérité drama from Poliakoff, which is both neatly written and directed. A frequent feature is Victoria station which looks like some kind of jumble sale. The transfer I watched on Freeview seemed smudgy but in a way added to the hazy mood. We have the bereft father scouring grungy London alongside another parent on her own hunt. The characterisations and depth to the story take a while to unravel themselves but it becomes more complex, even philosophical, as we get filled in bit by bit as to the psychodrama, and the parental dynamics are more shown, not told. It's not too harsh actually, as there is a tender side to every interaction, and to a large extent the viewer is left to complete the nightmare exploitative possibilities largely in his or her own head. The pace picks up a bit halfway and I won't venture into spoiler territory, but on the whole the tone is thoughtful rather than dynamic. There's a touch of the drizzly Odyssey through a specific political landscape, with various sketchy yet colourful characters popping up. There's big motifs like the many random juvenile workers crawling out of the woodwork in virtually every scene, Norman Tebbit clearly features on interior graffiti in one scene as does his 'get-on-your bike' trope throughout the screenplay, and a there's this mad nostalgia for youthful fancy in the two adult protagonists for instance all in the mix, and it all makes for a slow and ambiguous reveal. Largely it's metaphorical, apart from a great little unhinged monologue from Dad near the end, and, I guess this is the point, everyone remains as buttoned up and and as so very English as they all began, or is there possibility of repentance? Ultimately it's strangely warm and optimistic. This beguiling little film definitely goes in my 'hidden gem' box.
Review of Runners
