Scrapper

Date: 05/03/2024 Times: 7:30 pm - 8:55 pm

This is the third film we have shown in the last few months that feature stunning performances by small girls, in stories about father/daughter relationships; the others were The Quiet Girl and Aftersun. Winner of a Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, and with five nominations in the British Independent Film Awards, Scrapper is full of spirit, humour, and formal inventiveness that sets it apart from much of British working-class cinema. Harris Dickinson and remarkable newcomer Lola Campbell imbue irresistible charm into this moving and frequently hilarious story of two emotionally tangled people: a grieving kid thrust into adulthood and a father in over his head. Spiders play a part too. It is the first feature film written and directed by Charlotte Regan, who is not yet thirty.

The father-daughter comedy follows Georgie (Campbell), a resourceful 12-year-old girl who secretly lives alone in her flat in a working class suburb of London following the death of her mother. She makes money stealing bikes with her best friend Ali (Alin Uzun) and keeps the social workers off her back by pretending to live with an uncle. Out of nowhere, her estranged father Jason (Dickinson) arrives and forces her to confront reality. Uninterested in this sudden new parental figure, Georgie is stubbornly resistant to his efforts. As they adjust to their new circumstances, Georgie and Jason find that they both still have a lot of growing up to do.

You could see how Scrapper could be played for tragedy or melodrama, even. But Charlotte Regan establishes a fluid, flexible tone and mood, giving her enormous freedom with the material. The fluidity allows for whimsy, pathos, tenderness, humor, and even meta-asides, where neighbors turn to the camera and comment on the action, functioning as a judgmental Greek chorus.

Venue: William Loveless Hall