Andrew Garfield is mesmerising as a young man starting life anew after growing up in detention. " A poignant realist drama that will leave a big emotional impression." — Time Out
Screened as part of NZIFF 2008
Boy A 2007
Playing a young man who has grown up in detention after committing an appalling crime as a child, actor Andrew Garfield galvanises Boy A with a performance of James Dean-like yearning and raw sensuality. Setting out at 25 to begin rehabilitated life, he faces myriad challenges in relating to the world through an assumed identity. "Jack" craves the one thing his proud and solicitous case worker (Peter Mullan) warns him he can never have: total acceptance. As he falls in love with the brash Michelle, his desire for honesty becomes more and more unnerving. Meanwhile, images from the past flood the tabloids that bay daily for "Boy A"‘s life-long incarceration. Garfield‘s intensely sympathetic performance places the film firmly in favour of the right of juvenile offenders to a second chance. But there‘s complex recognition in his gripping story that society‘s reluctance to forgive is only the first obstacle to beginning life afresh. — BG