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Boy A
The Weinstein Company
MPAA RATING: Not Rated
Starring
Andrew Garfield,
Peter Mullan,
Shaun Evans,
and
Katie Lyons
BOY A is a fictional story about Jack. His involvement in the murder of another child means Jack, at 24, has spent most of his young life in juvenile prisons. Released from prison into an unrecognizable adult world, Jack is given a new name, new job, new home; a new life. But anonymity is both a blessing and a curse as Jack has to contend with not being able to tell the people he gets to know, and love, of his true past and the monstrous secret he must keep hidden. (The Weinstein Company)
| GENRE(S): |
Drama
|
| WRITTEN BY: |
Mark O'Rowe
Jonathan Trigell (novel)
|
| DIRECTED BY: |
John Crowley
|
| RELEASE DATE: |
DVD: October 7, 2008
Theatrical: July 23, 2008
|
| RUNNING TIME: |
100 minutes, Color |
| ORIGIN: |
UK |
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
100
Film Threat
KJ Doughton
One of the most gripping, thought provoking dramas ever to ponder crime and punishment.
90
Los Angeles Times
Gary Goldstein
While the cast is uniformly superb, Garfield ("Lions for Lambs") deserves special mention for his deep, extraordinarily expressive performance.
90
Washington Post
Ann Hornaday
It's beautiful. I loved it. And it broke my heart.
90
Wall Street Journal
Joe Morgenstern
Andrew Garfield's phenomenal performance makes room for the many and various pieces of Jack's personality, whether or not they're securely fastened together.
88
Chicago Sun-Times
Roger Ebert
Mullen and Garfield anchor the film. Mullen, that splendid Scottish actor ("My Name Is Joe") and Garfield, 24, with his boyish face and friendly grin.
83
Portland Oregonian
Stan Hall
That the audience is forced to examine its own assumptions about the situation is the result of an extraordinary, moving performance by Andrew Garfield.
80
Salon.com
Andrew O'Hehir
A compelling, compact melodrama that packs an emotional wallop. It's my nominee for sleeper surprise of the summer, at least so far.
80
NPR
Bob Mondello
Jack, as played by Andrew Garfield, comes across as agonized, desperately anxious to get things right -- something you might also say about the filmmakers, who have turned Boy A's very particular story into a scary, universal and wrenching social statement.
80
Village Voice
Ernest Hardy
The film's both smart and devastating as it unthreads interwoven questions about redemption, justice, and the pivotal role of history in shaping an individual and his actions.
80
The New York Times
Stephen Holden
Mr. Garfield's performance makes Jack so endearing and vulnerable that as he takes his first wobbly steps, like a baby bird shoved from its nest, your instincts are protective.
80
Chicago Reader
J.R. Jones
The movie is taut with suspense but culminates in wise resignation as the hero comes to understand he's running from a part of himself.
75
San Francisco Chronicle
Ruthe Stein
Boy A will rivet you while raising issues about forgiveness and just who deserves it.
75
The Onion (A.V. Club)
Noel Murray
For all Crowley's reliance on quiet naturalism, Boy A ultimately steals a page from film noir, showing how guilt and constant hounding can turn any ex-con into the desperate animal everyone presumes him to be.
75
Chicago Tribune
Michael Phillips
Like "Control," the recent Anton Corbijn treatment of rock star Ian Curtis' short life, the powerful British drama Boy A announces its gravitas with a look--organically achieved, with cinematography, production design and direction working together--you are meant to notice.
75
TV Guide
Ken Fox
Director John Crowley and screenwriter Mark O'Rowe's follow-up to their feature film debut "Intermission" may follow an all-too schematic flashback structure, but the film is too brilliantly acted for that to really matter much.
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
Kamal AL-Solaylee
Even its structurally weaker moments give Garfield an opportunity to expand on Jack's physical and mental dislocation. Given Boy A's final floating reel, it's an anchoring performance in every sense of the word.
75
Baltimore Sun
Michael Sragow
The genius of Garfield's performance is that he fills him with equal amounts of terror and wonder.
70
Variety
Joe Leydon
Picture inspires respect for its first-rate performances, artful construction and meticulous understatement.
63
Boston Globe
Wesley Morris
Boy A comes frustratingly close to succeeding as tragedy.
60
New York Daily News
Joe Neumaier
If Hitchcock had done a coming-of-age drama, it might have resembled this haunting, nervous, sad movie about an early twentysomething.
50
New York Post
Lou Lumenick
Moves in a predictable path that includes some remarkable coincidences.
50
New York Magazine
David Edelstein
This is another of those dead-kid dramas in which the terrible event is handled like a striptease--tantalizing flashes until the climax.
 The average user rating for this movie is 8.8 (out of 10) based on 6 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
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