Fantasia 2010: OUTCAST Review
[With Irish effort Outcast making its first Canadian appearance we re-visit our previous review of the film.]
Shot through with flashes of outright brilliance, Colm McCarthy's Outcast is a film that never quite figures out what it wants to be. Is this the story of Fergal, the roving Irish teen of unusual parentage struggling to hold on to the first romantic relationship he has ever experienced? Or is this the story of Mary, Fergal's wild and wildly protective mother? A woman steeped in lore and history Mary fears that her son may take a wrong turn and may unleash something terrible in the process. Or is this the story of Cathal, the man with a dark history tracking down both mother and child, intending to kill them both? Because the film never decides which it wants to be it ends up being a curious and sometimes clumsy amalgamation of all three, an unfortunate situation that prevents it from reaching the heights that are so nearly in its grasp.
First, the good. Director Colm McCarthy has created here a gripping, intimate and shockingly visceral portrait of the sidhe, the Celtic fairy people. Theirs is a wild magic, one steeped in blood and pain and ritual and McCarthy captures it all in potent fashion. To my knowledge there has never been a film to touch on this enormous wealth of myth and folklore in such a fashion and that seems an absolute crime because the magic elements of Outcast are exactly that on screen: magical and mysterious, a little bit frightening and absolutely riveting.
The magic is riveting because it is believable and for that McCarthy deserves full marks for the way he handles his talented cast. Youngsters Niall Bruton and Hanna Stanbridge as the star crossed lovers who make up the young end of the cast while Kate Dickie and James Nesbitt positively burn up the screen with their mutual hatred and menace. If there is justice in the world, Dickie and Nesbitt will soon be fielding a wave of offers from Hollywood on the back of this film.
And here's where McCarthy makes the first of his two significant mistakes, I think. Strong as Bruton and Stanbridge may be, their love story is badly underwritten and verges on cliche. The story of Fergal and Petronella just isn't all that interesting, particularly not when put beside the burning hatred of Mary and Cathal and yet every time things heat up between the two adults we cut away to spend a bit more time with the teens. Though Fergal is only really interesting in that Cathal wants to kill him while Mary wants to protect him, he is given lead time in the film which frequently throws things out of balance and disrupts the flow. It's almost as if McCarthy didn't realize just how strong his adults were and felt the need to young things up a bit to appeal to a broader audience. Not only an unnecessary move but also a counterproductive one.
Mistake number two? While attempting not to completely spoil the ending I can say that while the technical aspects of the film are generally very strong - the work of cinematographer Darran Tiernan, in particular, is outstanding - there is a significant special effects sequence in the finale of the film that just isn't good enough. Instead of the finale bolstering the emotional distress of one of the core characters the dodgy work ends up verging a bit on the silly side.
Though Outcast never becomes the brilliant film it is so close to being it nonetheless showcases a stack of impressive talent. McCarthy is clearly one to watch for, as is Teirnan behind the camera, and his entire cast is very strong indeed. The flaws are significant, yes, but the high points are very high indeed.
Shot through with flashes of outright brilliance, Colm McCarthy's Outcast is a film that never quite figures out what it wants to be. Is this the story of Fergal, the roving Irish teen of unusual parentage struggling to hold on to the first romantic relationship he has ever experienced? Or is this the story of Mary, Fergal's wild and wildly protective mother? A woman steeped in lore and history Mary fears that her son may take a wrong turn and may unleash something terrible in the process. Or is this the story of Cathal, the man with a dark history tracking down both mother and child, intending to kill them both? Because the film never decides which it wants to be it ends up being a curious and sometimes clumsy amalgamation of all three, an unfortunate situation that prevents it from reaching the heights that are so nearly in its grasp.
First, the good. Director Colm McCarthy has created here a gripping, intimate and shockingly visceral portrait of the sidhe, the Celtic fairy people. Theirs is a wild magic, one steeped in blood and pain and ritual and McCarthy captures it all in potent fashion. To my knowledge there has never been a film to touch on this enormous wealth of myth and folklore in such a fashion and that seems an absolute crime because the magic elements of Outcast are exactly that on screen: magical and mysterious, a little bit frightening and absolutely riveting.
The magic is riveting because it is believable and for that McCarthy deserves full marks for the way he handles his talented cast. Youngsters Niall Bruton and Hanna Stanbridge as the star crossed lovers who make up the young end of the cast while Kate Dickie and James Nesbitt positively burn up the screen with their mutual hatred and menace. If there is justice in the world, Dickie and Nesbitt will soon be fielding a wave of offers from Hollywood on the back of this film.
And here's where McCarthy makes the first of his two significant mistakes, I think. Strong as Bruton and Stanbridge may be, their love story is badly underwritten and verges on cliche. The story of Fergal and Petronella just isn't all that interesting, particularly not when put beside the burning hatred of Mary and Cathal and yet every time things heat up between the two adults we cut away to spend a bit more time with the teens. Though Fergal is only really interesting in that Cathal wants to kill him while Mary wants to protect him, he is given lead time in the film which frequently throws things out of balance and disrupts the flow. It's almost as if McCarthy didn't realize just how strong his adults were and felt the need to young things up a bit to appeal to a broader audience. Not only an unnecessary move but also a counterproductive one.
Mistake number two? While attempting not to completely spoil the ending I can say that while the technical aspects of the film are generally very strong - the work of cinematographer Darran Tiernan, in particular, is outstanding - there is a significant special effects sequence in the finale of the film that just isn't good enough. Instead of the finale bolstering the emotional distress of one of the core characters the dodgy work ends up verging a bit on the silly side.
Though Outcast never becomes the brilliant film it is so close to being it nonetheless showcases a stack of impressive talent. McCarthy is clearly one to watch for, as is Teirnan behind the camera, and his entire cast is very strong indeed. The flaws are significant, yes, but the high points are very high indeed.
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