Christy Review
As a 17-year-old, Christy (Danny Power) is almost out of the foster system, and the road ahead is uncertain. His brother/half–brother, Shane (Diarmuid Noyes), has taken him in after a fight got him kicked out of his last home. It’s not an ideal situation. Shane has a baby to look after, and seems to have worked hard to separate himself from his familial roots. But with no other foster families available in the area to take him, Christy really has nowhere else to go.
Brendan Canty’s directorial debut is a quiet gem, following the brothers as they try to work out how to live with each other. Both Shane and Christy were in ‘the system’, but separately. Shane has a business, a home, and a family. Christy has nothing. It takes a while for the audience to learn exactly what happened for their family to dissolve – the information is drip-fed, exposition never heavy-handed. Despite seeming to be a troubled kid, prone to violence, it doesn’t take long for Shane to settle into his new life – even if he doesn’t know how long he’ll have it.
He bonds instantly with Shane’s child, a sweet, refreshingly innocent connection in contrast to his violent reputation. He makes friends with others his age in the area. After offering to cut the hair of a local boy, Robot (Jamie Forde), whose mother is too busy, he’s offered a job in the hairdressers where his mother used to work. He insists that he doesn’t know what he’s doing with his life and seems directionless. But, little by little, he starts to put down roots. Life, happiness, and contentment seem within reach.
Yet behind it all lingers a precarity. This life was always meant to be temporary. Violence is omnipresent. It hangs over scenes with Christy’s cousins, and is present even in the birthday presents of children. Robot’s friends gift him a knuckle duster (or knuckle buster, they’re not completely sure) – an “antique weapon”. It’s funny, but a bleak premonition. When will those weapons be used for violence? Which of these kids will fall to the wrong side of the tracks?
That question is raised again in the character of Troy (Lewis Brophy), Christy’s cousin, who lives nearby. Shane has entirely separated himself from the family, and with good reason. Their house has a sense of threat about it that oozes through the screen, a feeling that things could kick off at any minute. Between drugs, violence and the suffocating presence of older cousin Trevor (Chris Walley), it’s an uncomfortable place. Troy acts as a foil to Christy, an image of what his life could be. Despite having a limited presence, Brophy brings a quiet sadness to the character, whose longing looks and occasional rebellion emphasise his entrapment.
The primarily young cast are excellent in their roles; natural, funny, relaxed and familiar with one another. Forde is particularly exceptional, demonstrating an emotional handle beyond his years. No matter how small the role, every member of the cast brings a depth to their characters that hints at complexity beneath the surface and adds a truth to their world. There are no weak links here. Christy doesn’t bring anything particularly innovative to the table in terms of themes and social commentary, but the character work, well-crafted and tactfully sparse script and clear love for the location give it a startling flair.
★★★★
In UK cinemas now / Danny Powder, Diarmuid Noyes, Emma Willis, Chris Walley, Lewis Brophy, Jamie Forde / Dir: Brendan Canty / Altitude Distribution, WildCard / 15
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