IS ANYBODY THERE? (John Crowley). 94 minutes. Opens Friday (May 15). For venues and times, see Movies. Rating: N
Is Anybody There? pairs Michael Caine with Son Of Rambow’s wide-eyed Bill Milner in a syrupy tear-jerker about a withdrawn boy who learns card tricks and valuable life lessons from the senile magician his parents have moved into his bedroom.
Yeah, it’s one of those movies.
[rssbreak]
Actually, it’s all of them. Peter Harness’s script steals shamelessly from an entire cycle of twee British cinema. I had the sense that he wanted to write something commercial, but couldn’t be arsed to come up with an original idea. (Given the current trends in British film production, we should probably be glad he didn’t end up with Harry Potter torture porn.)
The characters are made of cardboard, the conflicts borrowed from other, better films. If they’d added a few fart noises and a wacky nurse, they could market it as one of those scattershot parody films: Twee Movie.
Sure, it’ll make you think fondly of your grandparents, but so will a flip through the family album.
