Film Reviews

Wah Wah

• Rating:
• Director: Richard E. Grant.
• Starring: Gabriel Byrne, Miranda Richardson, Emily Watson, Nicholas Hoult.
• Details: UK, 120mins, 15A.

Set against the backdrop of Swaziland's independence from Britain in 1969, Wah Wah charts the tumultuous adolescence of Ralph Compton (Hoult) as he tries to come to terms with his parents' separation. His father Harry (Byrne) is a generous, light-hearted man but when his wife Lauren (Richardson) leaves him for his buddy, it sends him into an alcoholic spiral. Packed off to boarding school at eleven, Ralph returns a few years later to find that his father has married sassy American Ruby (Watson) but the close-knit community of British upper class soldiery find it hard to accept her. Based on his own experiences growing up in Swaziland, this is Richard E. Grant's debut feature as a writer-director. The film looks spectacular - shot in that sepia tone reminiscent of Agatha Christie's 70's screen adaptations we've all been forced to sit through on a Sunday afternoon - and the performances are pitch perfect. Byrne is the standout as he really lets himself go in his first real role in years veering from hilarity to absolute meanness with ease. Watson, Richardson and Julie Waters all offer superb support and Hoult (About A Boy) does a fine job in his first leading role. However, Grant's episodic, meandering plot never seems to have any focus as he jumps from one sequence to another without tying anything together. A solid if uninspiring debut, Grant hopes that we are as enthralled in his life as he is. The answer, gladly, is no.

Review by Gavin Burke