Now here’s a genuine oddity. A film financed by the BFI and Scottish Screen, which basically depicts the highlands of Scotland as the loneliest, darkest place in the world and with almost no way out.
Pirrie plays Shell, a 17-year-old girl living and working in a battered, run-down garage on a desolate road through the Highlands. Mum has long-since gone, so she lives with her dad (Mawle), an apparently broken man who works hard on cars, washes his hands and sleeps, and says virtually nothing.
The only thing that breaks up Shell’s day is the occasional regular Robert, who treats her kindly, and Adam, a young lad who clearly fancies her and wants to take her out for a drink. She, however, is always working’ which basically means sitting behind the counter staring at the empty shelves. Even the cold drinks fridge seems to be permanently empty.
There are a lot of deer in the film one gets hit by a car, one nudges Shell’s window, one ends up in the freezer. It’s all very symbolic, in a rather obvious way, running alongside Shell’s increasing attention on her father. He realises she is starved of attention, and suggests getting a dog we know it’s not going to end well.
It’s a desperately bleak film, which seems to revel in its desperation the highlands have never looked so brown and unrelentingly cold and rainy. The script could probably be squeezed onto two sides of A4, so if you want action this is probably not for you.
Ultimately it has some sort of positive message but it’s a hard watch. Pirrie is outstanding in a difficult role, windswept, make-up free and utterly fed up for much of the film, she still manages to exude warmth and sympathy. Much of her dialogue consists of discussing the weather, but somehow she manages to grab the attention.
Overall verdict: A difficult, bleak look at loneliness and family ties, which is an acquired taste but rewards concentration if you’re in the mood.
Reviewer: Mike Martin