Randy Pelish at the Movies ‘The Souvenir’
~By Randy Pelish~
The English have a long cinematic history of dramatizing the sordidness of post-World-War II life. Movies like The Lonlinessof the Long Distance Runner, The Entertainer, and The Caretaker among many others come to mind. The Souvenir is worthy of their company.
Joanna Hogg has written and directed this devastating portrait of a young woman whose life is disintegrating in front of her, although shot in color, this film is as gray as the 1980s London it portrays.
Her lover is a heroin addict, a thief, and a sexual compulsive. Older and supposedly more sophisticated, he manages to destroy her life before he irrevocably ends their relationship leaving her to sort out the chaos.
This is a brilliant film. And while this is her story, her family, friends, and yes, her lover, are equally clueless. For 15,000 years civilization has sought to bring order to this chaos. Civilization has failed. Johanna Hogg has not. Honor Swinton Byrne as the girl in question is perfect as is the rest of this fine cast.
Hurry to see this film. It won’t be in Reno long.
The Souvenir is currently playing at the Century Riverside 12 in Reno.
[Official Trailer]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9Al2nC0vzY
