Garth Jennings and Nick Goldsmith are better known as British production duo Hammer and Tongs, who have created some of the country's most inventive and innovative music videos. A few years back, they took on Douglas Adams' The Hitchhicker's Guide to the Galaxy, but for their second feature film, Son of Rambow, they take on a smaller story about two young school chums from different backgrounds, and in a mere 94 minutes, it has become my favorite movie of this year's Sundance Film Festival.
This light-hearted coming-of-age tale centers around the friendship between two very different boys. There's the imaginative and impressionable Will, a member of the Amish-like Plymouth Brethren, meaning that he never has seen a movie or watched television before, and there's Lee Carter, a school bully and chronic troublemaker who has been bootlegging and selling copies of Sylvester Stallone's new movie First Blood. They meet under strange circumstances, and seeing that he can take advantage of the idealistic boy, Carter convinces him to star in his home movie, which he hopes to enter in a young filmmakers' contest But Will has already become enamored with the movie business after seeing First Blood, and he becomes obsessed with his new role as "Son of Rambow."
Son of Rambow is another great example of how strong films can be when they don't feature known names or faces, because the characters seem that much more real and believable. The film is very much the logical extension of Hammer & Tongs music video work, incorporating the same sense of humor and imaginative visuals, a lot of it taken from Will's imaginative drawings. The interaction of the two boys is a lot of fun, particularly while they're making the movie and Will performs a number of hysterical stunts, but there's also a very funny subplot involving a foppish French exchange student (Jules Sitruk) who suddenly finds himself being followed by an entourage of students, though it's not immediately apparent what the exploits of this ultra-cool poser and his gang has to do with the story of Will and Lee, at first.
The movie isn't all laughs though, as it deals with the boys' very real family issues, Will having to deal with the fact that his puritanical upbringing is opposed to Lee's ways, which causes troubles for him at home. On the other hand, Lee has no real family, just an older brother who pays very little attention to the him, which may be why he's always getting into so much trouble. The entire film is driven by two great performances from Bill Milner (as Will) and Will Poulter (as Lee), both making their acting debuts with this film.
Son of Rambow is another wonderful surprise at this festival, and it's already one of the biggest buys at the festival, having been picked up by Paramount Vantage for $7 million.
It's a charming and inventive film that's a real winner!
(ComingSoon.net will have an interview with Garth and Nick shortly.)
