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Mister Foe

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Mister Foe (2008)

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Reviews Counted:60

Fresh:43

Rotten:17

Average Rating:6.5/10

Consensus: Carefully balanced between the dark and the dreamy, Mister Foe is a charged coming-of-age story with whimsy and bite.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for strong sexual content and language.

Runtime: 1 hr 36 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:Sep 5, 2008 Limited

Synopsis: MISTER FOE is director David MacKenzie's offbeat film adaptation of Peter Jinks's coming-of-age story centered on the unlikely protagonist of Hallam Foe, excellently portrayed by Jamie Bell (BILLY... MISTER FOE is director David MacKenzie's offbeat film adaptation of Peter Jinks's coming-of-age story centered on the unlikely protagonist of Hallam Foe, excellently portrayed by Jamie Bell (BILLY ELLIOT). A troubled young man beset with voyeuristic tendencies and a strong Oedipal longing for his dead mother, Hallam is a sensitive and volatile teenager who has taken to spying on his stepmother, Verity (Claire Forlani), who he suspects is responsible for his mother's death by drowning two years earlier. When a charged psychosexual confrontation with Verity stokes the fires of his unresolved grief, Hallam flees his father's country estate for the picturesque Scottish capital of Edinburgh. There, he sets his sights on Kate (Sophia Myles), an attractive hotel manager who happens to bear a striking resemblance to his late mother. Soon, through a bit of charm and more than a little stalking, Hallam scores a menial job under Kate's employ; romantically--or creepily, depending on your viewpoint--Hallam pines for Kate from a distance, observing her daily activities (kickboxing, grooming, sex), through binoculars. Hallam's adolescent fantasies soon blossom into an unlikely romance when, during an after-work function, Kate revealingly declares, "I like creepy guys." While MISTER FOE tackles some rather unsettling psychological territory, David MacKenzie infuses the film with enough light, comic touches and a playful atmosphere of magic realism to prevent it from edging toward dolorous melodrama. Rounding out this very likeable indie feature are a delightful animated title sequence by artist David Shirgley, and a spirited soundtrack from Domino Records, featuring a bevy of Scottish rockers such as Franz Ferdinand and Orange Juice. [More]

Starring: Jamie Bell, Ciaran Hinds, Sophia Myles, Jamie Sives

Starring: Jamie Bell, Ciaran Hinds, Sophia Myles, Jamie Sives, Maurice Roeves, Ewen Bremner, Claire Forlani

Director: David Mackenzie

Director: David Mackenzie
Screenwriter: David Mackenzie, Ed Whitmore
Producer: Gillian Berrie

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Release:

Nov 11, 2008

[DVD Details]
 
 
  • Jamie Bell is Hallam Foe, a troubled young man whose knack for voyeurism paradoxically reveals his darkest fears, and his most peculiar desires. Driven to expose the true cause of his mother's death, he instead finds himself searching the rooftops of the city of Edinburgh for love.
  • Source: Magnolia Home Entertainment
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    Reviews for Mister Foe

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    Rarely have I seen a film end so satisfactorily and without feeling cheated by a conclusion ready made for first dates.

    Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
    09/08/07
    Jamie Gillies
    Jamie Gillies
    Apollo Guide

    Equal parts sweet and perverse, this Scottish film is unpredictable in places where it might be twee, and subversively fanciful in others where it might be punishing.

    Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
    08/22/08
    Marjorie Baumgarten
    Marjorie Baumgarten
    Austin Chronicle

    Grief, voyeurism and latent necrophilia make a beguiling brew in Hallam Foe, a smart coming-of-age tale from the director of Young Adam.

    Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
    07/10/07
    Neil Smith
    Neil Smith
    BBC

    The acting is of the highest order, especially the tandem of Myles and Bell, who are touching and finely balanced in the detail of their characters.

    Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
    08/30/07
    Richard Mowe
    Richard Mowe
    Boxoffice Magazine

    An engrossing, provocative drama, the feature sniffs out just the right level of lurid behavior to keep the viewer in concert with the mounting domestic woes. It's a feature of unpredicted, and quite thrilling, discomfort.

    Full Review Source: BrianOrndorf.com | comment Comment
    09/04/08
    Brian Orndorf
    Brian Orndorf
    BrianOrndorf.com

    David Mackenzie's fourth feature is an immensely enjoyable and incredibly well-judged film, which confirms Jamie Bell as one of Britain's brightest young actors.

    Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
    08/31/07
    Demetrios Matheou
    Demetrios Matheou
    Channel 4 Film

    [A] prettily photographed but relationally science-fictional coming-of-age blather.

    Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment Comment
    10/18/08
    Michael Phillips
    Michael Phillips
    Chicago Tribune
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    [The film's] intellectualized sexuality stirs neither the head nor the nether regions.

    Full Review Source: Cinematical | comment Comment
    09/05/08
    Nick Schager
    Nick Schager
    Cinematical

    Boring, meandering, and painfully self-important, "Mister Foe" is writer/director David Mackenzie's follow-up to his much better effort "Young Adam" (2003).

    Full Review Source: ColeSmithey.com | comment Comment
    09/04/08
    Cole Smithey
    Cole Smithey
    ColeSmithey.com

    Didn't I review this coming-of-age picture back in the spring when it was called Charlie Bartlett?

    Full Review Source: Combustible Celluloid | comment Comment
    09/11/08
    Jeffrey M. Anderson
    Jeffrey M. Anderson
    Combustible Celluloid

    A striking film but certainly more of one that grows on you rather than one that's immediately compelling.

    Full Review Source: ComingSoon.net | comment Comment
    09/02/08
    Edward Douglas
    Edward Douglas
    ComingSoon.net

    An insightful, well-acted serio-comic look into the mind of a creepy 18-year-old Scot.

    Full Review Source: Compuserve | comment Comment
    07/30/08
    Harvey S. Karten
    Harvey S. Karten
    Compuserve

    Bell shines as the baleful yet sympathetic Hallam, but there’s little else to get excited about, with the eventual love affair between him and Kate deeply improbable.

    Full Review Source: Daily Mirror [UK] | comment Comment
    08/31/07
    Daily Mirror [UK]

    Decidedly dark material handled with a pleasing lightness of touch.

    Full Review Source: Daily Telegraph | comment Comment
    08/31/07
    Daily Telegraph

    The Hitchcockian elements are actually much subtler than recognized, partly because the film is generally more a comedy than some Peeping Tom-esque thriller.

    Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
    04/09/08
    Erik Childress
    Erik Childress
    eFilmCritic.com

    An intriguing rites-of-passage story with a delirious, skewed perspective and an almost palpable sexual pulse.

    Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
    08/31/07
    Damon Wise
    Damon Wise
    Empire Magazine

    It's a modestly effective story, even a little moving in a weird way, and worth watching for Bell's intriguing and sympathetic performance.

    Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com | comment Comment
    05/20/08
    Eric D. Snider
    Eric D. Snider
    EricDSnider.com

    The adolescent peeping Tom Hallam Foe is a fascinating character, brought to thrilling life by Jamie Bell in yet another extraordinary performance.

    Full Review Source: european-films.net | comment Comment
    03/28/07
    Boyd van Hoeij
    Boyd van Hoeij
    european-films.net

    Jamie Bell in his most memorable outing since Billy Elliot, as a Peeping Tom acting upon Oedipal urges in a dysfunctional family drama from Scotland.

    Full Review Source: EURWeb | comment Comment
    09/06/08
    Kam Williams
    Kam Williams
    EURWeb

    This Scottish film often pushes for realism, though its stylish tones fall back on whimsy.

    Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
    09/26/08
    Matthew Sorrento
    Matthew Sorrento
    Film Threat
     
     
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    Latest News for Mister Foe

    January 08, 2009: RT Interview: Jamie Bell talks Defiance and Dance
    Jamie Bell tap-danced his way into the national consciousness with his breakthrough performance in Billy Elliot nine years ago. Since then he has worked with heavyweight screen... More...

    November 02, 2008: Baret DVD News: 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. Opens in new window
    More...

    September 08, 2008: Teen Peeping Tom acts upon oedipal urges in dysfunctional family drama from Scotland. Opens in new window
    More...

    September 03, 2008: 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. Opens in new window
    More...

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