Fish Tank

Films that strive for extreme realism are often very exhausting and do not allow the viewer to escape the (dreary) everyday life. However, every now and then there are films that, while on the one hand come across as very authentic and realistic, nevertheless have something very special, wonderful about them that absolutely justify a visit to the cinema. The acclaimed "Fish Tank" is one such film.

The film tells the story of teenager Mia (Katie Jarvis), who feels completely lost in her world and counters this feeling with extreme aggression. Whether with her motherJoanne (Kierston Wareing), with the girls from the neighborhood or even with her little sister - Mia is constantly at loggerheads with them. Only when she's on her own, pursuing her secret passion of dancing, can she escape her anger and frustration. When Mia's mother brings home her new boyfriend Connor (Michael Fassbender), a person enters Mia's life who seems to take her and her dreams seriously and who slowly but surely manages to break through to the withdrawn girl. But can Connor really be just a friend, a father figure for Mia?

Director Andrea Arnold was very concerned about authenticity in her production. So it was extremely important for her not to cast a trained actress in the leading role, but a "echten" teenage girl, who you can see her problems, her anger and frustration in every second. Since this has been of immense importance to the film's success, it is all the more gratifying that Arnold has made a real stroke of luck with Katie Jarvis. Discovered on a train platform, the girl more than convincingly manages to convey the chaotic emotional world of a teenager to the screen. Despite her occasionally antisocial behaviour, Mia is never unsympathetic. It is obvious that she is desperate, feels cornered and therefore reacts with such aggressiveness to her environment. But even the outbursts of rage, the threats of violence and insults never seem contrived or acted, which adds enormously to the film's impact.

Set in a dreary housing estate in Essex, east of London, "Fish Tank" initially gives a very grey, almost depressing impression. But the deeper the viewer gets into Mia's life and her soul, the clearer it also becomes that Andrea Arnold has made a film that, although it doesn't gloss over anything, is still a very positive film that doesn't kick the viewer in the stomach when they are already emotionally down, but helps them up and shows them that there is always hope for a better future and that it is worth fighting for.

"Fish Tank" is a powerfully directed, magnificently acted film about the confused emotions of a girl growing into a woman, a great drama about adolescent misfits beyond all teen movie clichés. A small film, but a very big piece of British cinema. Absolutely worth seeing

An article by Frankfurt-Tipp