X
- 2002
- R
- Cowboy Pictures
- 1 h 37 m
- 2002
- R
- Cowboy Pictures
- 1 h 37 m
Summary An aimless supermarket clerk (Morton) in a small Scottish town gets a new lease on life upon discovering her boyfriend dead under their Christmas tree.
Directed By: Lynne Ramsay
Written By: Liana Dognini, Alan Warner, Lynne Ramsay
- 2002
- R
- Cowboy Pictures
- 1 h 37 m
- 2002
- R
- Cowboy Pictures
- 1 h 37 m
Morvern Callar
78
6.4
Summary An aimless supermarket clerk (Morton) in a small Scottish town gets a new lease on life upon discovering her boyfriend dead under their Christmas tree.
Directed By: Lynne Ramsay
Written By: Liana Dognini, Alan Warner, Lynne Ramsay
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 24 Critic Reviews
78
96% Positive
23 Reviews
23 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
4% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 24 Critic Reviews
78
96% Positive
23 Reviews
23 Reviews
0% Mixed
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
4% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
A work of astonishing delicacy and force, a tone poem about the Frankenstein jolts that all of us, at one time or another, have to live through.
Morton deserves an Oscar nomination, but she is unlikely to get one. The movie is too dark and out of the mainstream to impress the conservative fogies who vote for the prizes.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 20 User Ratings
6.4
55% Positive
11 Ratings
11 Ratings
35% Mixed
7 Ratings
7 Ratings
10% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 20 User Ratings
6.4
55% Positive
11 Ratings
11 Ratings
35% Mixed
7 Ratings
7 Ratings
10% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
Meditative soul-search - Lynne Ramsay explores the inner life of the mysterious woman Morvern Callar in her second feature film preceding her acclaimed feature film debut "Ratcatcher" (1999).
Morvern Callar is a woman in her twenties who lives with her boyfriend in a Scottish coastal town where she works at a shopping mall with her best friend Lanna. Christmas is nearby, and one day after visiting the local pub with Lanna, Morvern returns to her home where she finds her boyfriend dead on the floor of their living room. Left behind with an unpublished novel, a recorded tape of music and some money, Morvern invites her friend on a holiday trip to Spain.
Scottich film maker, screenwriter and photographer Lynne Ramsay had made three short films and her first feature film "Ratcatcher" (1999) before she made this innovating character study which was shoot in UK, Scottland and Spain. Her patient and poetic camera movements mirrors a passion and consideration for her motives which is very appealing. The intimate close ups of Samantha Morton leads the viewer closely enough to captivate it's attention, and Lynne Ramsays individualistic film style and creative perspectives makes her one of the most interesting female directors a long side Susanne Bier, Jane Campion, Sally Potter and Margreth Olin.
Once one sees the face of Samantha Morton it triggers our curiosity for the dark haired, mystic and short spoken Morvern Callar who has recently lost her lover and is getting trough the initial phase of grief. Morvern is an archetype heroine, and after facing a traumatic incident she counterattacks in stead of digging herself down. But is she in denial? or is she trying to escape reality? The synoptic though alluring screenplay adapted from Alan Warners novel aims in on the main character and creates an unforgettable character brought to life by Samantha Morton who delivers an enchanting performance which is reminiscent of Emily Watson`s performance in "Breaking the Waves" (1996).
Alvin H. Kuchler`s colorful and artistic photography and the psychedelic music from amongst others Apex Twin and The Velvet Underground increases this interpretive independent films cryptic mood.
Report
Morvern Callar not only attempts to reveal an interior life, usually the province of novels, but also focuses on the interior life of a woman who refuses to open up to anyone.
Ramsay's second feature is an extraordinary adaptation of fellow-Scot Alan Warner's acclaimed novel.
Strange, moody film.
In Morvern Callar, the subject matter may be morbid and unappealing, but the director handles it with a visual poetry and an eye for hidden beauty that marks a filmmaker of the first order.
Fans of director Lynne Ramsay's first movie, the bleak Ratcatcher won't be surprised that this little existential exercise makes The Stranger look like a funwagon.
Morvan Callar joins the countless number of feminine characters in cinema whose unrestrained mystique equally frustrates and fascinates the viewer, and ultimately keeps us glued to the screen. Samantha Morton's performance is really what gives the movie its power (more so than Ramsay's directing), managing to lure us in but leave us disconnected from the mysterious stoichism of her character. The hipster soundtrack and fast-cut editing were nice touches, bringing its classic philosophical ideas to the modern age, a structure which is bound to strike a chord among niche audiences (i.e. Druggies/Clubbers/Hipsters). However, the dialogue almost seems like it was added as an afterthought and the messages presented only seem half-fulfilled by the end of the film.
Report
Production Company
Alliance Atlantis Motion Picture Production,
BBC Film,
UK Film Council,
Scottish Screen,
The Glasgow Film Fund,
BBC Scotland,
National Lottery,
H2O Motion Pictures,
Company Pictures
Release Date Dec 20, 2002
Duration 1 h 37 m
Rating R
Genres
Awards
British Independent Film Awards
• 2 Wins & 7 Nominations
Chlotrudis Awards
• 3 Nominations
Cannes Film Festival
• 2 Wins & 2 Nominations
