Son of Rambow
“Son of Rambow” is a coming-of-age comedy about friendship, imagination, and the power of cinema to inspire. Not in an overly dramatic way, which is all to the good. Writer-director Garth Jennings (who last made the 2005 adaptation of “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”) has tapped into perhaps his own nostalgia of growing up in the ’80s with a story that’s as touching as it is funny, and there’s a lot of both feelings going around in the film.
Will Proudfoot (Bill Milner) is a young boy going to an English boarding school, but forced to abstain from watching such luxury’s like television by his puritanical family, especially his mother Mary (Jessica Stevenson). But one look at his book of drawings, and the bathroom stall he decorates at school, and you can tell that Will’s upbringing is only holding him back.
That’s where Lee Carter (Will Poutler), the school bully, comes in. Through sheer coincidence, Will finds his way hiding out in Lee’s shed from his brother. While Lee tries to smooth things over, he has a videotaped copy of “Rambo: First Blood” going on the TV. It’s Will’s first time seeing the television, and to say it makes an impression. Will soon agrees to help Lee out with a screen test for a filmmaking competition, but bigger things come to mind when Will’s vivid imagination and Lee’s camera come into contact. Enter their co-production of “Son of Rambow,” with Will taking the lead role. It’s not long until Will’s desire to tell stories and his imagination clash with his upbringing.
Of course, cynics will cry foul, saying how this whole premise rests of copyright issues of sequelizing a major movie, to say nothing of the crime of bootlegging and videotaping the film in the theatre (which is what Lee has done). Those people don’t deserve to feel the warm and winning touch that a film like this has to offer to those whose hearts are open to it. Jennings is the real-deal as a filmmaker- even though “Hitchhiker’s Guide” was a hit-and-miss affair for this geek, it was nonetheless one that hit far more than it missed, and its’ best moments have stuck with me in the year’s since seeing it.
“Son of Rambow” goes it one better, maintaining Jennings’ unquestionably British wit while striking a chord that is universal. The film hits on the same scrappy tone of Michel Gondry’s “Be Kind Rewind”- and actually, a lot of the same themes- but has a more innocent heart to it. Though it’s rated PG-13, the fact is this would be a perfectly fine film for young kids to watch. It deals with young friendships between differing personalities in a thoughtful way, as well as stands in favor of kids finding their own niche in life instead of being condemned to the ones their parent’s may want for them. It promotes imagination in youthful eyes, and while it may seem rebellious, the fact is we’re merely watching Will come out of his shell, which is something everyone needs to do at some point in their lives. OK, the scenes of wanton violence- mostly taken from “First Blood”- might be a little much for the youngins’, but parents could do worse than allowing their children to watch this film. It’s got some good messages about growing up in it. And it’s fun to watch. What more can you ask for in a movie like this?
