At its best,Nicholas Verso’s tale of estranged teens feels like an attempt to reinvent The Babadook by way of Heartbreak HighBoys in the Trees is no walk in the park; more like a stroll domestic on a dark spooky night. That’s the literal journey undertaken in the debut feature film of writer/director Nicholas Verso, a tale of two estranged teenage buddies walking the streets and creeping each other out at Halloween circa 1997. Underneath the bonnet, and it’s a film exploring childhood regret: in specific,how petty schoolyard games can fracture friendships.
Corey (Toby Wallace) hangs out with the cool boys. They swig vodka straight from the bottle, check porn sites (on rather gradual dial-up connections), and hang out at the skate park and pash girls. Ringleader Jango (Justin Holborow) is the leader of the pack: a self-entitled and violent sleazeball who considers himself something of a demigod. The sort of guy you want to slap in the face with a cold fish. Related: Girl Asleep review – as singular,enchanting and expansive as a young person’s mind Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com