With Hallam Foe, British director Peter MacKenzie and scripter Ed Whitmore adapt the 2002 novel of the same name, a quirky, bittersweet, coming-of-age psychodrama by Peter Jinks. The titular character is the 17-year-old son (Jamie Bell) of a wealthy Scottish businessman (Ciarán Hinds). Still rattled by the death of his mom (who drowned in a nearby loch), Hallam retreats into a deep-seated fantasy world. He harbors amorous feelings for his new stepmother, Verity (Claire Forlani), until he
gradually concludes that she murdered his biological mother. Hallam nonetheless lets himself be seduced into an affair with Verity, and is so repulsed by this transpiration that he flees to Edinburgh. His life turns a corner, however, when he spots -- and instantly becomes infatuated with -- Kate (Sophia Myles), a local girl who bears an uncanny resemblance to his mother. After he talks her into giving him a routine job in the kitchen of the hotel that she manages, they become romantically involved, ever so gradually, which spells trouble for Hallam's emotional state by thoroughly overwhelming and confusing him -- and deeper trouble still when Kate's married lover (Jamie Sives) discovers that Hallam has been spying diligently on Kate from his perch in a nearby bell tower. Ewen Bremner co-stars as the bellhop supervisor at the hotel. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi
Although it's nice to see Mackenzie find uplift in the erotic, what helps drive Mister Foe is how deftly he turns chasm into intimacy between Bell and Myles, both of whom give sharply observed, charismatic portrayals.
Jamie Bell gives a watchable performance in this self-conscious, coming-of-age drama, though the film's overall effect is best described as David Lynch lite.
A movie about a Scottish Peeping Tom who is sufficiently demented to give even Peeping Toms a bad name, it seems to be a lot less about fetish and voyeurism, than warped emotional espionage as pathological mommy love.
While the film playfully telegraphs its inspirations, Mister Foe never persuasively comes together as a dark fable about an adolescent misfit stuck in loss.
By the end of "Hallam Foe," you've nearly forgotten his all-too-regular boy development. Now you're wondering, what's Kate doing when he's not looking?
A worthy addition to Holden Caulfield's coming-of-age subgenre of off-kilter teenage boys let loose in big cities. Bell and Myles give terrific performances.
Awkward and engrossing movie that overcomes its unlikable lead by making him confused and relatable. It's a very difficult performance Bell has to pull off in this movie. He must present himself as a mentally fractured peeping tom whilst all the while leading us along a romantic path. The performances and
characterizations are key here. Forlani isn't exactly the evil stepmother from many movies, but she is able to carry a certain stench of menace. Paired with Bell's confusion and creepiness, it adds up to more of an emotional mystery than a murder one. In many ways it's a wonderful coming of age tale, that delicately approaches the mind of a teenager. It bridges the gaps between anger, madness, and danger. At times it tries to be a bit too hip, with it's constant twangy soundtrack, but at least it works nicely with the dull but mesmerizing cinematography.
This unusual film was a fantastic journey with the awkward lead character, Hallem Foe, as he pursued his voyeuristic impulses. No spoiler here. The acting was convincing despite the fantastic episodes. Cleverly crafted to form an intense yet warm & funny original work.
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