Slamdance 2021 Review: A Brixton Tale

A Brixton Tale (2021) is a British drama film. It was written by Rupert Baynham, Darragh Carey, and Chi Mai. It was directed by Darragh Carey, and Bertrand Desrochers.

Leah (Lily Newmark) fancies herself a filmmaker. She has a the eye of a documentarian, and spends her days collecting footage of the various people, places, and events in her life. Of late, Leah has taken a shine to her two newest subjects. Benji (Ola Orebiyi) and Archie (Craige Middleburg) are a pair of friends who spend their days trying to make money and getting into light-hearted mischief. In particular, Leah finds herself attracted to Benji. Leah manages to get Archie and Benji to start up a conversation with her. With the door open, Leah starts hanging out with these lads, and documenting their various exploits.

Meanwhile, Leah is working with Tilda (Jaime Winstone). Tilda manages or curates in some capacity, an art gallery. She is interested in Leah’s work. She likes the footage Leah has shown her, and sees potential in Leah as a filmmaker. Although their relationship isn’t exactly that of a conventional student and mentor. Tilda does provide Leah with direction and feedback but she is also very harsh. She pushes and coerces Leah into acquiring more and more provocative footage.

As Leah and Benji’s romance develops, Leah tries to put Benji in situations that will yield footage that is more to Tilda’s liking. Leah’s camera is always with them and always on. There are a number of instances within which people who find themselves unwilling subjects of Leah’s shooting, strenuously object to being captured on tape in candid moments. Even Benji gets upset with Leah, imploring her to turn the camera off. But Leah doesn’t just know how to use a camera, she is a camera. There are a few close calls, but each and every time, Leah manages to escape with her camera and footage intact.

At a house party in a wealthy residence, Leah and Benji run afoul of a former flame of Leah’s, Charles (Barney Harris). Charles tries to warn Benji about Leah. He also warns Leah, in no uncertain terms, that she is not to make the footage she has taken at his party public. Meanwhile, Archie has a substance abuse problem that continues to worsen. This puts great strain on his relationship with Benji. Leah, however, seems to be doing gangbusters. Tilda is hosting a screening of her footage at her art gallery.

On the night of the big premier, there is electricity in the air. Leah will be making her public debut as a filmmaker, and everyone who is anyone will be there. Including Charles, and Inez (Rose Kerr), Benji’s mother. Because his mother will be in attendance, Benji has asked Leah to remove certain chunks of footage that show him doing a bunch of stuff that he doesn’t want his mom to see him doing. Leah who is more concerned with what Tilda thinks, has opted not to remove the footage. After her reel expires, there is great fallout. Benji is upset that she ignored his pleas and feels ambushed and betrayed.

You know who else felt ambushed and betrayed? Charles. Leah is going to have to do a lot of figuring and soul searching to find a way out of a sizable mess that she is at the very center of. Benji is mad, Charles is mad, and Archie has gone off the deep end. Can Leah dig her way out of this? Will true love find a way to persevere? Gotta watch A Brixton Tale to find out.

This was quite an interesting film. There was a lot going on in there. At a lean 75 minutes or so, A Brixton Tale takes on a lot of the issues that plague society today. Race, class, art, revenge, voyeurism, drug addiction, poverty, crime, truth… Everything is under the microscope here. What is the most surprising, is how thoroughly it manages to make its points and raise its questions, all in under 90 minutes.

Okay, so maybe not all of its ideas and themes are as fully developed as they might have been. Archie’s struggle with substance abuse, for example, exists a little more on the periphery of the story than some of the other elements. Consequently, we don’t get quite enough of his story. Leah’s home life is another subject that is only touched upon in a cursory manner. We definitely get the sense that she is not only wealthy, but a bright student as well. However, when it comes to her fascination with the other side of the proverbial tracks, we don’t get too much info on how or why she is drawn to the people, places and things to which she is drawn.

However, the successes of A Brixton Tale outweigh its flaws. We are given enough detail and exposition about things that we are perfectly enabled by this film to consider the things it is asking us to consider. The characters weave a tangled web in which we the audience become stuck. We are stuck to Leah and Benji, and can do nothing other than anticipate the drama to come, and shake our heads when it arrives.

The success of the film could not have been achieved without some really strong performances. While it is Leah’s camera through which the story evolves, it is really Benji’s film. Ola Orebiyi brings Benji to life in a very credible way. While Benji gets into a lot of morally and/or legally questionable situations, he retains an innocence that makes his ultimate trajectory that much more tragic.

Lily Newmark is equally in fine form. Leah is quiet and thoughtful, but she is also a lot sharper than she lets on right away. Although, she is sharp enough to get herself into some real shit, she isn’t necessarily sharp enough to get herself out of it. At least, not unscathed. Nor is she quite sharp enough to keep her loved ones from harm. Newmark provides Leah with an inner-strength that allows her to be alternately admirable, and frustrating.

A Brixton Tale also features some beautiful cinematography. London is an old city, with a lot of history. Cinematographer Kristof Brandl has managed to capture the mileage on London’s odometer without making it look dirty or bleak. There is also a good deal of night footage that manages to look totally natural. An admirable achievement by any cinematographic standards.

A Brixton Tale is a 21^st century take on human tendencies that are as old as time itself. It is a lean and mean urban nightmare of a fairy tale. It presents a story that is rich in its layers, and manages to tell it in an efficient manner. While providing this offering at its leanest, the possibility exists that it will leave you slightly unsatisfied with the story elements that aren’t as fully developed. However the film gives the audience plenty, when it comes to processing the full scope of the story. It’s gritty and at times grim, but it’ll sure make you think.