Viewed in
2012
Formats
HDTV
Premise
Aaron Johnson stars as teenage John Lennon, who's raised by his stern aunt while his mother is often absent.
Liked
Interesting story, strong performances.
Thoughts
I liked it. It had an intriguing premise buoyed by strong performances and good music.
To be honest, I'm unsure how accurate the plot was from real life, but the film piqued my interest, and found myself strung along as Lennon struggled back and forth between his two motherly figures, while feeling giddy as his music career ramped up from the Quarrymen to the Beatles.
Beatles fans might be slightly disappointed that there was no Fab Four music nor did the story actually go into that part of Lennon's life. But of course, everyone knows about that aspect of his career, and wasn't essential to this film. Instead, it was chock full of music from that era, tapping into Lennon's possible influences. Also, it was amusing to see him idolizing and dressing up like Elvis.
The trio of actors were excellent, delivering emotional punches during the climactic reveals. Johnson definitely sounded like Lennon, but oddly enough he looked more like him in Kick-Ass than here. But the point is whether he could act the part, and he succeeded in creating a believable teenager on the brink of coming of age. Kristin Scott Thomas was fantastic as the reserved, disciplined aunt. Quite a presence. (I can't believe I remembered her from the first Mission: Impossible movie.) Anne-Marie Duff was very good here and in The Last Station as seductive free spirits.
If I had to nitpick, the directing was unclear at times. The chronology of the story felt a bit out of whack, like I couldn't tell if a scene was part of a dream/flashback or part of the main plot. Trying to reorient myself during these scenes was distracting. Also, I felt like it never really dived into Lennon's psyche, why he got into music. Perhaps that wasn't the point.
Nowhere Boy was an enjoyable drama. Beatles fans get a glimpse of Lennon pre-Fab Four. Regular moviegoers get a good tale about a lost teenager and strong acting.
