Fifteen-year-old Oliver Tate is decidedly weird and extremely delusional which is all part of his charm. When he’s not day dreaming at school about the imagined outburst of nationwide grief that would occur if he died, he has two big ambitions. He is desperate to lose his virginity before his next birthday, and he also wants to save his parents’ marriage when he thinks his strait-laced mother is having an affair with their New Age weirdo neighbor. He aggressively pursues Jordana a self-professed pyromaniac to be his girlfriend, and after they ‘consummate’ the relationship his idea of romancing her is discussing where Nietzhe got it all wrong.
This wonderfully quirky comedy from Wales of all places is an absolute gem. The two young leads turn in performances that hint at real stardom ahead for them, and alongside them as the mother is Sally Hawkins who I initially really loathed in ‘Happy Go Lucky’ and has now become one of my favorite actors, (don’t miss Made in Dagenham).
I first saw ‘Submarine’ at Sundance and immediately fell in love with it, and so did others and hence this wee independent very accessible movie that would normally have otherwise fallen under the radar is in some UK theaters now. It more than holds up to a second viewing and re-affirms how the Brits are masters at really funny quirky comedy. It’s unmissable, even for non-Brits.
★★★★★★★★
