/Speak Like A Child (1998).jpg)
/Speak Like a Child (1998).jpg)
Speak Like a Child
- Director: John Akomfrah
- Writer: Danny Padmore
- Producer: Lazell Daley; Ben Gibson
CGiii Comment
This is a film of halves...half of it is pretty bloody good and the other half is pretty damn terrible...which is a shame.
Inconsistency is the main problem...it's as if there were two technical teams working against each other.
Sometimes, the photography is astonishingly beautiful and then, it's the complete opposite.
The young actors do an incredible job...particularly Newman...but, the older actors are unable to compete - that's possibly down to the strengths and weaknesses of the writing.
The director's decision to structure the film as a series of flashbacks was not the most prudent of choices...again, it weakens the many strengths the film offers.
This is a story of a beautiful youthful relationship - despite its flaws, it still deserves to be seen.
And, on a final note, the music is truly magnificent.
No trailer...
The(ir) Blurb...
A married couple meets up with an old friend. It is revealed that the three had become close friends at a home for children. Flashbacks develops their relationship and their sharing of everything. It is revealed that the single man wants the couple to move in with him. The woman, who is pregnant, reveals she is ready to dump her husband and begin a relationship with the other man. But all are bothered by some distant past secret.
Cast & Characters
Cal Macaninch as Billy, Age 30;
Daniel Newman as Billy, Age 14;
Richard Mylan as Sammy, Age 30;
Fraser Ayres as Sammy, Age 14;
Rachel Fielding as Ruby, Age 30;
Alison Mac as Ruby, Age 14;
Carla Henry as Dorothy;
Gavin Green as Bernie;
Helen Lederer;
Shelley O'Brien;
Shirley Henderson as Woman in Dream