34 reviews
A funny, witty, and creepy glimpse inside genius gone horribly wrong.
Director Benjamin Ross has done a terrific job creating a humorously warped view of life through the eyes of Graham Young, alienated boy genius and serial poisoner. Hugh O'Conor perfectly portrays Graham's carefully studied innocent appearance, which Graham constantly feigns lest anyone find out what he is really thinking in his twisted, calculating mind. O'Conor manages the tricky job of looking innocent enough to fool the other characters, but maniacal enough that the audience always knows what is going on.
Through Graham's eccentric (to say the least) point-of-view, we witness the painfully mundane Young family, the pitifully easy to fool psychiatric and medical community, and the pathetically simple-minded middle-class. Ross captures the comic disdain with which Graham sees his surroundings without disposing of the distance necessary to be horrified at Graham's "experiments" and the fate of his unwitting subjects.
Because of Ross' careful tightrope walking between distance from and intimacy with Graham, the audience can't fully fall under Graham's spell and sympathize completely with him. There are some gruesome scenes of people reacting to poison, but these are necessary to heighten the audience's horror at Graham's incapability to assess his own actions and to recognize his own evil. Ross gives us an entertaining, yet twisted, glimpse into genius gone wrong, without sensationalizing Graham as a hero.
It is also very hard to go out for drinks or coffee after seeing this movie.
Through Graham's eccentric (to say the least) point-of-view, we witness the painfully mundane Young family, the pitifully easy to fool psychiatric and medical community, and the pathetically simple-minded middle-class. Ross captures the comic disdain with which Graham sees his surroundings without disposing of the distance necessary to be horrified at Graham's "experiments" and the fate of his unwitting subjects.
Because of Ross' careful tightrope walking between distance from and intimacy with Graham, the audience can't fully fall under Graham's spell and sympathize completely with him. There are some gruesome scenes of people reacting to poison, but these are necessary to heighten the audience's horror at Graham's incapability to assess his own actions and to recognize his own evil. Ross gives us an entertaining, yet twisted, glimpse into genius gone wrong, without sensationalizing Graham as a hero.
It is also very hard to go out for drinks or coffee after seeing this movie.
Be careful who's making your cuppa...
I really enjoyed The Young Poisoner's Handbook. Some people made the comparison with A Clockwork Orange from Stanley Kubrick and I can get where they come from if they mean the same tune they play a couple of times and also the fact that when Graham Young is getting institutionalized one doctor tries to cure him from his demons but other then that those two movies are completely different. While A Clockwork Orange was about a young man against society using ultra violence this one is about a young smart apathetic guy poisoning everybody he dislikes. Plus the fact that this movie is based on a true story while Kubrick's masterpiece was just fictional makes it totally useless to compare both movies. Nevertheless I thought Tobias Arnold as Graham Young gave a good performance as well as the other actors. Certainly worth a watch.
- deloudelouvain
- Apr 7, 2015
- Permalink
Black comedy near its best
Why has 'The Young Poisoner's Handbook' not developed a cult following? I have some theories, but this is certainly a film that should have found a larger audience at some point.
This is pitch black British comedy near its best, reminiscent of both Hitchcock and 'A Clockwork Orange' -- its three-part structure is similar to that of 'A Clockwork Orange,' given that the protagonist is free, then confined, then free again to illustrate the vanity of "rehabilitation" where it concerns psychopaths, and we even hear excerpts from Purcell's Funeral Music for Queen Mary, which Wendy Carlos incorporated into her electronic score for 'Clockwork.' Whether 'The Young Poisoner's Handbook' is paying homage or borrowing, the movie itself is a highly individual work that should please anyone with a fondness for Orwell or Ealing.
Hugh O'Conor, with his wide-eyed gift for simulating innocence, is an ideal selection for the role of Graham Young, the real-life poisoner of the British village of Bovingdon, who slowly poisoned his stepmother to death with antimony sulfide, finishing the job with thallium. Cursed with a banal home life and a sociopathic mind, his self-described "gift for chemistry" is put to obviously nefarious uses, occasionally using friends as guinea pigs before the main attraction.
The director, Benjamin Ross, makes a tremendously impressive debut here. His selection of music together with his fluid editing and camera-work often produce stirring and exciting results, the 1960s small British town setting keenly observed, with a very black wit. Graham's wicked stepmother, played by the singular Ruth Sheen (seen in many Mike Leigh films), joyfully accepts her first dose of poison after finding a box of Velvet Victories chocolates on her bedroom pillow, with a note reading "To my darling mother, xxxx." There's a vivid sense of the dustiness of the Young household, the darkness of Graham's bedroom punctured by the eerie glow of his flasks, the frustration of an overcrowded working class household where the telly's always running with the silliness of popular variety programs. The film also adroitly contrasts the self-important grandeur of Young's genocidal ambitions with the unglamorous pettiness of the actual crimes and the prosaic Bovingdon environment to which his perpetration of them was fortunately limited (the real Graham Young had wanted to be known as "The World's Poisoner," but was instead given the considerably less flattering moniker "The Teacup Poisoner"). Absurdity and grimness are very skillfully balanced. A marvelous, overlooked film.
This is pitch black British comedy near its best, reminiscent of both Hitchcock and 'A Clockwork Orange' -- its three-part structure is similar to that of 'A Clockwork Orange,' given that the protagonist is free, then confined, then free again to illustrate the vanity of "rehabilitation" where it concerns psychopaths, and we even hear excerpts from Purcell's Funeral Music for Queen Mary, which Wendy Carlos incorporated into her electronic score for 'Clockwork.' Whether 'The Young Poisoner's Handbook' is paying homage or borrowing, the movie itself is a highly individual work that should please anyone with a fondness for Orwell or Ealing.
Hugh O'Conor, with his wide-eyed gift for simulating innocence, is an ideal selection for the role of Graham Young, the real-life poisoner of the British village of Bovingdon, who slowly poisoned his stepmother to death with antimony sulfide, finishing the job with thallium. Cursed with a banal home life and a sociopathic mind, his self-described "gift for chemistry" is put to obviously nefarious uses, occasionally using friends as guinea pigs before the main attraction.
The director, Benjamin Ross, makes a tremendously impressive debut here. His selection of music together with his fluid editing and camera-work often produce stirring and exciting results, the 1960s small British town setting keenly observed, with a very black wit. Graham's wicked stepmother, played by the singular Ruth Sheen (seen in many Mike Leigh films), joyfully accepts her first dose of poison after finding a box of Velvet Victories chocolates on her bedroom pillow, with a note reading "To my darling mother, xxxx." There's a vivid sense of the dustiness of the Young household, the darkness of Graham's bedroom punctured by the eerie glow of his flasks, the frustration of an overcrowded working class household where the telly's always running with the silliness of popular variety programs. The film also adroitly contrasts the self-important grandeur of Young's genocidal ambitions with the unglamorous pettiness of the actual crimes and the prosaic Bovingdon environment to which his perpetration of them was fortunately limited (the real Graham Young had wanted to be known as "The World's Poisoner," but was instead given the considerably less flattering moniker "The Teacup Poisoner"). Absurdity and grimness are very skillfully balanced. A marvelous, overlooked film.
- MichaelCarmichaelsCar
- Jul 16, 2004
- Permalink
Runs like Clockwork...
...A Clockwork Orange to be precise. Which is something of a bafflement, as besides the occasional coincidental similarity the basic story ears no relation or resemblance to the Stanley Kubrick film or the Anthony Burgess novel. And they don't try to shy away from the fact that they've ripped off the film - they even use the same piece of music at certain times.
So, inspired by the nadsat talk of the original and far superior film, the story is; Your Humble Narrator is only interesovatted in one lesson at the skolliwoll - Chemistry. He uses his knowledge to slowly poison his poor old pee and em but gets found out by the millecents and sent to Staja. There, he sucks up to the psychologist and gets an early release for being so horrorshow with the old chemicals. But once out, he begins poisoning the grahzny vonny malchicks and ptitsas at his firm, until they also figure out what he's up to and send him away again, O my brothers.
And if you understood that you're a better man (or woman) than most. The film has identical shots and similar scenes to Kubrick's film, but has none of the originality or daring subject matter of it. As A Clockwork Orange was still banned when this film was released, I can only assume they thought no-one would remember what it was like and would let this pass. It makes absolutely no sense, but it has created a talking point that the film otherwise wouldn't have, since essentially this is nothing more than another average British movie.
So, inspired by the nadsat talk of the original and far superior film, the story is; Your Humble Narrator is only interesovatted in one lesson at the skolliwoll - Chemistry. He uses his knowledge to slowly poison his poor old pee and em but gets found out by the millecents and sent to Staja. There, he sucks up to the psychologist and gets an early release for being so horrorshow with the old chemicals. But once out, he begins poisoning the grahzny vonny malchicks and ptitsas at his firm, until they also figure out what he's up to and send him away again, O my brothers.
And if you understood that you're a better man (or woman) than most. The film has identical shots and similar scenes to Kubrick's film, but has none of the originality or daring subject matter of it. As A Clockwork Orange was still banned when this film was released, I can only assume they thought no-one would remember what it was like and would let this pass. It makes absolutely no sense, but it has created a talking point that the film otherwise wouldn't have, since essentially this is nothing more than another average British movie.
- heywood100
- May 22, 2003
- Permalink
Some gross scenes hurt this very sick black comedy.
I usually like black comedies, but what exactly is so funny about scenes showing people writhing in agony, retching and vomiting? Even though there were some clever quips in the narration, I'd classify this more as a sick comedy. And since it was based on actual events it put even more of a damper on my enjoyment of it. The best that can be said of it is that there was some fine acting, with Hugh O'Conor perfect in the title role, and it was well-made.
Singing Star Commits Mass Murder !
I saw a docu-drama on Graham Young several years ago and I remember it being rather cliched in style with characters complaining of feeling unwell followed by a jump cut to their funeral with Young standing at the graveside with a smug expression . Despite its flaws the docu-drama did at least stick to the true life story of Young unlike THE YOUNG POISONER`S HANDBOOK which starts with a disclaimer that many events are fictionalised . It`s no bad thing twisting the truth to this story because I`d have felt extremely guilty laughing out loud as people were poisoned
The one obvious problem is Hugh O`Conor as Graham Young . He`s very good in the role but if the Young family are working class then why does young Graham speak with an upper class public schoolboy accent ? Couldn`t the director have told him to tone it down a bit ? Worse still - And there`s no way anyone would have known this in 1995 when the film was made - Mr O`Conor looks exactly like Gareth Gates . If you`ve no idea who GG is let me explain that he was runner up in Britain`s POP IDOL contest last year . He lost out to Will Young ( No relation I take it ) in the final but Gareth was the real star who became an even bigger selling artist than Will , all the teenage girls loved him due to his choir boy looks and perfect manners and I can`t hammer home enough the striking physical similarities between Mr Gates and Mr O`Conor . I spent the entire duration of THE YOUNG POISONER`S HANDBOOK convinced that the star of POP IDOL was killing people which made me laugh even louder
Yeah but I shouldn`t have laughed . Despite much artistic license this is still a true story of how innocent people were murdered by a psycopath and I hope no one else decides to make more black comedies featuring mass murderers . I hate myself for enjoying this movie
The one obvious problem is Hugh O`Conor as Graham Young . He`s very good in the role but if the Young family are working class then why does young Graham speak with an upper class public schoolboy accent ? Couldn`t the director have told him to tone it down a bit ? Worse still - And there`s no way anyone would have known this in 1995 when the film was made - Mr O`Conor looks exactly like Gareth Gates . If you`ve no idea who GG is let me explain that he was runner up in Britain`s POP IDOL contest last year . He lost out to Will Young ( No relation I take it ) in the final but Gareth was the real star who became an even bigger selling artist than Will , all the teenage girls loved him due to his choir boy looks and perfect manners and I can`t hammer home enough the striking physical similarities between Mr Gates and Mr O`Conor . I spent the entire duration of THE YOUNG POISONER`S HANDBOOK convinced that the star of POP IDOL was killing people which made me laugh even louder
Yeah but I shouldn`t have laughed . Despite much artistic license this is still a true story of how innocent people were murdered by a psycopath and I hope no one else decides to make more black comedies featuring mass murderers . I hate myself for enjoying this movie
- Theo Robertson
- Apr 27, 2003
- Permalink
One of the Best Sleepers
I truly love this film. The look on young Graham's face when he got his first chemistry set was probably like the one on my own when I got mine. Because I loved my family, I chose other areas of research and never experimented on them. That said, I found the humor in this black comedy right on target and I actually felt sorry for the young poisoner. If he had worked for Q branch he most likely would have received a knighthood rather than a prison sentence. I have no idea how close to the truth this movie is but it is on my top 20 films of all time.
The Persecuted Young Scientist .
- AnthonyMeg
- Jan 8, 2017
- Permalink
Of Chemistry, Columbine, and cultural cowardice
there's a difference in ripping off and paying homage
young poisoner's handbook clearly shows where it's stylish inspiration came from, i find it hilarious that certain reviewers can be so daft they are bashing this movie as a clockwork orange rip-off, the director wants us to know his inspirations, get it?
furthermore, this is not a bad movie at all. the witty and funny yet insane atmosphere creates an enjoyable adult's fairytale. HOWEVER, remember this is not a fairytale. as far as info about young tells me he was a sick sick man who was fascinated with nazi's chemical methods and also used them.
the world is full of evil murderers who have hands that are smooth as a baby's bottom.
furthermore, this is not a bad movie at all. the witty and funny yet insane atmosphere creates an enjoyable adult's fairytale. HOWEVER, remember this is not a fairytale. as far as info about young tells me he was a sick sick man who was fascinated with nazi's chemical methods and also used them.
the world is full of evil murderers who have hands that are smooth as a baby's bottom.
- william_blake
- Jul 21, 2003
- Permalink
Bliss Black Comedy
- jgrayson_au
- Nov 18, 2002
- Permalink
A Clockwork Orange revisited.
Having embraced 'A Clockwork Orange' when first released, I found this an interesting reworking of the 'misunderstood teenager by society-in-general and politicos-in-particular' theme. The background music was the dead give-away, no pun intended. A historical/period piece, 'Poisoner's Handbook' put 'Clockwork' into perspective, while remaining an entertaining bit of film. All 'round better sense of humour then it's predecessor. Casting was a delight.
Empty
Dark and amusing but not to all tastes
As a boy, Graham was always keen on chemistry. When he is introduced to a deadly chemical he begins to conduct experiments on his cruel family namely by slowly poisoning his mother. Shortly after her death Graham is caught for her murder and sentenced to a mental institution. With help and treatment from a physiatrist, Graham is rehabilitated and released into the community. But can his love of poison be controlled?
I first saw this in the cinema many years ago and held off writing a review because I wanted to be sure that I could give it a fair review memory not that great you know. So I watched it on channel 4 last week and was quite taken aback I didn't remember it being quite that dark and disturbed. The plot is quite like Kind Hearts & Coronets in the set up and delivery (more in the delivery) but is a lot darker and more cruel than that classic. The comedy is of the very dark type and mostly comes from Graham's narration. His narration plays his acceptance of very shocking events as run-of-the-mill things that happen in the background, this juxtaposition works well and makes it funny.
The actual poisonings are not always easy to laugh through, while some of his mother's ordeal is played for laughs, most of it is quite cruel and upsetting. I think it worked well for playing the audience on the fact that we didn't quite know what this was it was based on a true story yet was played for laughs as well as serious at times. However this same ploy is to it's weakness as it is difficult to settle into for this same reason. The director seems very assured and handles this better, mixing inappropriate music with the action as well as directing it very flat and clinically.
O'Conor is the perfect choice for the role. Onscreen he is cold and cruel but it is his narration is where he excels delivering perfectly deadpan lines. The support cast are all OK but mostly play exaggerated characters on the whole British stereotypes and such. The film wisely leaves them as undeveloped this because if we cared too much for them or related to them then it would have been impossible to feel anything but revulsion for Graham. As cardboard cutouts they seem less than Graham in terms of the film (wonder how the real victims' families felt about this view).
Overall this is a strange film but one that has enough going for it to be worht watching. However it should be noted that it is quite cruel and upsetting we are not allowed to feel anything for Graham's victims. The humour is rarely laugh out loud funny and this will probably only be for those who like their comedy very dark.
I first saw this in the cinema many years ago and held off writing a review because I wanted to be sure that I could give it a fair review memory not that great you know. So I watched it on channel 4 last week and was quite taken aback I didn't remember it being quite that dark and disturbed. The plot is quite like Kind Hearts & Coronets in the set up and delivery (more in the delivery) but is a lot darker and more cruel than that classic. The comedy is of the very dark type and mostly comes from Graham's narration. His narration plays his acceptance of very shocking events as run-of-the-mill things that happen in the background, this juxtaposition works well and makes it funny.
The actual poisonings are not always easy to laugh through, while some of his mother's ordeal is played for laughs, most of it is quite cruel and upsetting. I think it worked well for playing the audience on the fact that we didn't quite know what this was it was based on a true story yet was played for laughs as well as serious at times. However this same ploy is to it's weakness as it is difficult to settle into for this same reason. The director seems very assured and handles this better, mixing inappropriate music with the action as well as directing it very flat and clinically.
O'Conor is the perfect choice for the role. Onscreen he is cold and cruel but it is his narration is where he excels delivering perfectly deadpan lines. The support cast are all OK but mostly play exaggerated characters on the whole British stereotypes and such. The film wisely leaves them as undeveloped this because if we cared too much for them or related to them then it would have been impossible to feel anything but revulsion for Graham. As cardboard cutouts they seem less than Graham in terms of the film (wonder how the real victims' families felt about this view).
Overall this is a strange film but one that has enough going for it to be worht watching. However it should be noted that it is quite cruel and upsetting we are not allowed to feel anything for Graham's victims. The humour is rarely laugh out loud funny and this will probably only be for those who like their comedy very dark.
- bob the moo
- May 2, 2003
- Permalink
Good film but the end was a bit confusing
- xuehuabingyu
- Oct 2, 2024
- Permalink
Sick 'n Brilliant
This delightfully evil confection should warm the cockles of any mad scientist's heart. Our 14 year old hero dispenses antimony with precision glee and soon graduates to thalium before getting caught. But that's just the beginning really. A preternaturally good perfomance in the lead role, superior period decor of the hideous early sixties, a score to bless Purcell's heart, a cool and steady directorial hand and a wicked sympathy for the young man in question work to maximal effect. This may be the first quality film I've seen that genuinely crosses the line of sympathy for the evildoer; toss in lots of vomit and the best gotcha jump scene ever carried off, and there's lots to shy away from--for the faint of heart. Oliver Sacks sometimes writes about the joys and freedoms for the mind of a young chemistry set owner in the old days before restriction but I don't think he had this in mind. And my girlfriend wonders why I shy away from potluck dinners.
Great story, but the truth is more scarier...
This is a remarkable story. When this film is gruesome, it's very very gruesome. And when it's brilliant, it's very very brilliant. And that is most of the time. The joy of the movie is strong supporting cast who react in quirky, British ways to Graham and the mysterious illnesses going around. O'Conor gives an intense but restrained portrayal of the troubled lad and provides some good skin shots as well. Sher is a convincing professional trying to salvage some good from the unpromising inhabitants of the hospital. The acting is witty throughout.
This movie, in my view, is a terrific dead-pan black comedy. The first and last thirds are marvelous and fascinating to watch. The middle, while Graham is in the asylum, gets a bit serious. Graham is taken on his own terms in the movie, utterly serious, utterly committed to his calling, tracking his doses, noting the effects, estimating the time of death for those he will finish out. He observes with a clinical detachment which is amusing and unsettling. He shows no remorse because he doesn't know what remorse is. Hugh O'Connor does a wonderful job as Graham. He looks like a choir boy with a sincere stare. This one will make you think but keep you well entertained nevertheless.
Overall rating: 9 out of 10.
This movie, in my view, is a terrific dead-pan black comedy. The first and last thirds are marvelous and fascinating to watch. The middle, while Graham is in the asylum, gets a bit serious. Graham is taken on his own terms in the movie, utterly serious, utterly committed to his calling, tracking his doses, noting the effects, estimating the time of death for those he will finish out. He observes with a clinical detachment which is amusing and unsettling. He shows no remorse because he doesn't know what remorse is. Hugh O'Connor does a wonderful job as Graham. He looks like a choir boy with a sincere stare. This one will make you think but keep you well entertained nevertheless.
Overall rating: 9 out of 10.
- PredragReviews
- Aug 30, 2016
- Permalink
One of the most underrated British films of all time?
If you are able to cast aside the moral implications of creating a comedy( albeit a pitch black one) out of relatively recent real life tragic events than you'll find one of the 90's(and British cinema's) most underrated offerings. The Young Poisoner's Handbook tells the 'true' story of a very sick and twisted young man(brilliantly played by Hugh O'Connor) in appropriately sick and twisted fashion. If the Coen Brothers where British you could imagine them producing something along these lines. Indeed Benjamin Ross's debut feature is so accomplished and idiosyncratic you find yourself wondering why he hasn't a long list of features under his belt. Oh well, he has this one and it's great. Seek it out!
- garymason-99267
- Oct 4, 2015
- Permalink
Dark true, funny, maybe not
- meagherthomas
- Mar 7, 2008
- Permalink
The best thing since "A Clockwork Orange"
I don't know what to make of it, honestly. When I first saw it (on late night, and I stayed up till three AM watching it), I thought it was a little like "A Clockwork Orange".
Graham Young (Hugh O'Conor) I found an odd mixture of three parts: curiosity (what leads him to poisoning), clinical detachment (as he watches the results), and a longing to belong (when he tries to be normal -and fails miserably).
First he silently threatens everyone with a gruesome retaliation for the slightest things, and then charts their decline with frightful accuracy as they get sicker and sicker. After that, he retreats into his den again until something better comes along. And then he gets caught.
Then there's that uproarious scene when he's out with a girl, and he tries to get her in a conversation on disembowelment. You can almost see her turn green as he gets into stride. To him, it's an innocent thing; something he likes. For her (and for us, the audience), it's...sick.
I thought that the rehabilitation sequence was a farce. It's as ludicrous as the rest of this quirky gem of a movie, with great performances by all the actors, particularly Hugh O'Conor. He says more with his eyes than most could with their lips.
I mean, the movie is funny (not ha ha funny, though), dripping with corrosive irony. Young is all at once twisted and innocent, torn between conforming and that endless fascination with poison. The comparisons between this and "Clockwork" are almost inevitable, but unlike Kubrick's thriller, this one has a more subtle, menacing tone, for the mind rather than for the eye. It's not a laugh-out-loud film, though it's undeniably hilarious. Whatever you feel, it's kept inside.
If you're one with a sensitive stomach, suicidal tendencies, strange addictions, goody-goodies/puritans, then stay away. Otherwise, WATCH THIS FILM!
Graham Young (Hugh O'Conor) I found an odd mixture of three parts: curiosity (what leads him to poisoning), clinical detachment (as he watches the results), and a longing to belong (when he tries to be normal -and fails miserably).
First he silently threatens everyone with a gruesome retaliation for the slightest things, and then charts their decline with frightful accuracy as they get sicker and sicker. After that, he retreats into his den again until something better comes along. And then he gets caught.
Then there's that uproarious scene when he's out with a girl, and he tries to get her in a conversation on disembowelment. You can almost see her turn green as he gets into stride. To him, it's an innocent thing; something he likes. For her (and for us, the audience), it's...sick.
I thought that the rehabilitation sequence was a farce. It's as ludicrous as the rest of this quirky gem of a movie, with great performances by all the actors, particularly Hugh O'Conor. He says more with his eyes than most could with their lips.
I mean, the movie is funny (not ha ha funny, though), dripping with corrosive irony. Young is all at once twisted and innocent, torn between conforming and that endless fascination with poison. The comparisons between this and "Clockwork" are almost inevitable, but unlike Kubrick's thriller, this one has a more subtle, menacing tone, for the mind rather than for the eye. It's not a laugh-out-loud film, though it's undeniably hilarious. Whatever you feel, it's kept inside.
If you're one with a sensitive stomach, suicidal tendencies, strange addictions, goody-goodies/puritans, then stay away. Otherwise, WATCH THIS FILM!
- Slice of LIfe
- Jun 28, 2001
- Permalink
Vicious mind
The poisoner in question is Graham Young, played in early years by Tobias Arnold and then later by Hugh O' Conor, a true life psychopathic in 1960s England. A combination of "A Clockwork Orange" and "Fargo," this brilliant dark and vicious comedy-drama may well be the best unknown film I've ever seen.
Graham became infamous after killing his step mom by spiking her food with thallium and after arrest is treated in a mental hospital. After his "cure" and release, the criminal genius reverts to his true nature and resumes his previous path of bad deeds. Along with Ted Bundy, Graham Young is one of the most interesting criminal subjects brought to the screen.
Graham became infamous after killing his step mom by spiking her food with thallium and after arrest is treated in a mental hospital. After his "cure" and release, the criminal genius reverts to his true nature and resumes his previous path of bad deeds. Along with Ted Bundy, Graham Young is one of the most interesting criminal subjects brought to the screen.
A true Gem, high on my list
I was told this film had something special, so trusting my old friend, so tried to find it.
Wasn't easy, but cheap when I finally found it and what a movie.
The ambiance is amazing, the story brilliant and acting likewise.
Loved it, it's just one of those films you find one or two in a year, having to see around 100+ total waste of time 10 that you have some pleasant experience out of and then there are the Gems. Hard to find. My first one was Blade runner, 14 years old and Alien a bit older and from those days I hate "waste of timers" despise all crap with us moviegoers having to be strapped into a chair forcing our eyes open and fill us with "the message" instead of making a good film.
Wasn't easy, but cheap when I finally found it and what a movie.
The ambiance is amazing, the story brilliant and acting likewise.
Loved it, it's just one of those films you find one or two in a year, having to see around 100+ total waste of time 10 that you have some pleasant experience out of and then there are the Gems. Hard to find. My first one was Blade runner, 14 years old and Alien a bit older and from those days I hate "waste of timers" despise all crap with us moviegoers having to be strapped into a chair forcing our eyes open and fill us with "the message" instead of making a good film.
- patrikcaesar
- Dec 30, 2023
- Permalink
Nasty and Sickly, but Gripping in Parts
A hard film to really make, director 'Benjamin Ross' creates a horrifying and unsettling psychological horror that is, during its first half, gripping and mentally disturbing to the point of nearly making you want to vomit.
It's an odd cast. Hugh O'Conor is a quite splendid in the roll, managing to remain confident and certain in the character's decisions. Ruth Sheen transforms quite grotesquely during her screentime. But Roger Lloyd Pack feels out of place.
There are effectively two films here. The prior being a certain horror and the second being an investigation. It reaches high levels of tension and suspense, and there are injections of comedy that are actually sometimes to its credit, but overall it really struggles to balance the two and it's a difficult film to digest without your stomach turning.
It's an odd cast. Hugh O'Conor is a quite splendid in the roll, managing to remain confident and certain in the character's decisions. Ruth Sheen transforms quite grotesquely during her screentime. But Roger Lloyd Pack feels out of place.
There are effectively two films here. The prior being a certain horror and the second being an investigation. It reaches high levels of tension and suspense, and there are injections of comedy that are actually sometimes to its credit, but overall it really struggles to balance the two and it's a difficult film to digest without your stomach turning.
Do you take Antimony in your tea?
One problem with this movie was that I wasn't sure whether I was allowed to laugh or not. It's a sick, black comedy, and quite disturbing given that it's based on truth. And yet it's strangely humourous. Hugh O'Conor is absolutely PERFECT in the role of Graham Young. As a longtime Hugh O'Conor fan, I will admit I may have been biased towards this film -- after all, I will enjoy his work in any movie -- but this movie was also well-acted by the entire cast. If you can stomach it, watch the film.