FFFA: Morvern Callar (2002)

Morvern Callar

“★★★★★ It undoubtedly announces Ramsay as one of the most distinctive talents in British cinema.” – The Guardian

“Morvern Callar is both passionate and entertaining; perhaps the bravest, and certainly the coolest, film of the year.” – Sight and Sound

On Christmas morning in a small Scottish town, Morvern Callar (Samantha Morton, Minority Report) wakes to find that her boyfriend has died by suicide through the night. He left her a note, Christmas presents, a mixtape, money and an unpublished manuscript with instructions to submit it to certain publishing houses.

In a swift action of reinvention, Morvern changes the name on the novel manuscript to her own (note that her boyfriend, James Gillespie, shares a character name with the protagonist of Lynne Ramsay’s first feature, Ratcatcher), sends it to the publisher, takes the money and jets off to southern Spain with her best friend, Lanna, to party the pain away.

This adaptation of the 1995 novel by Alan Warner is hypnotic, painfully bleak but visually stunning, and led by a transcendent, enigmatic performance from Samantha Morton. It’s soundtracked by the boyfriend’s excellent mixtape selections, which include Aphex Twin, Boards of Canada, Stereolab, The Velvet Underground and Nancy Sinatra.

Festivals & Awards
Cannes Film Festival 2002 – Winner, Award of the Youth for Best Foreign Film; Winner, CICAE Award
British Independent Film Awards 2002 – Winner, Best Actress (Samantha Morton); Winner, Best Cinematography

Rating

M

Duration

97 min

Country

United Kingdom

Language

English, Spanish

Cast

Samantha Morton, Kathleen McDermott, Linda McGuire

Director

Lynne Ramsay