GFF: Day Seven

Final day of the Glasgow Film Festival and I've thoroughly enjoyed the varied selection of films seen over the last week and a half, especially seeing as this was my first time actively pursuing the showings (I did see Hamlet 2, a few years back which just happened to be part of the GFF that particular year). So to finish off my run I picked up the Frightfest leftover Almost Human and lastly British indie rom-com Benny & Jolene.


Almost Human — not to be confused with my new favourite TV show of the same name, this film is a fun genre crossover – part sci-fi, part horror. Filmed on a low budget, this film enjoyed the rough and ready camerawork to bring the story about the reappearance of an old friend/love after missing for two years. However his reappearance also coincides with a spate of grisly murders and more disappearances. So it's left up to the ex-best friend and ex-girlfriend to deal with the man/alien with disastrous consequences.

I like the mix of horror and sci-fi, although not as splattery as described by the director/producers/editors Joe Begos and Josh Ethier during their in-person introduction at the showing. The interesting concept and reasonable effects (considering the low budget) are let down slightly by the stiff performances by two of the three leads, who appear to be going through the motions rather than believing in the threat to the extent of actually showing real emotion. Perfect ending though.

Benny & Jolene — a charming and sweet rom-com, with a scathing look at the music industry as a backdrop. While normal teenage emotions run high between the titular couple, the signing to a record label and the hoops needed to jump through to please the executives, which strain their relationship to breaking point. Misunderstandings, embarrassment and broken dreams force Ben and Jo to really look at their lives and what they mean to each other without outside forces at work.

Benny, played brilliantly by Craig Roberts, leads the all British cast with his mopey, teenage tantrums and sensitive demeanour which is easily upset. The rest of the cast – including Charlotte Ritchie, Rosamund Hanson and Dolly Wells – all play their parts perfectly, offering a humourous respite to the reasonably serious setting. Handheld camera shudder offers a closer feel, like another band member on the road with them, allowing you into their lives without intrusion and the feel-good ending can be seen as both a failure and a success depending on how much you like the cutesy feelings it tries to conjure up.