Fish Tank (2009)

Director: Andrea Arnold
Writer: Andrea Arnold
Cast: Kate Jarvis, Michael Fassbender, Rebecca Griffiths, Kierston Wareing, Jason Maza
Genre: Drama, Teen

Fish Tank is a kick in your stomach, without having to go to the extremes. It demands your attention, without screaming at you. We've seen life at housing estates before, we've seen British harsh realism before, we've seen teens acting out before, but this time we get it all at once. There might be fewer guns at the British estates than the American ones seen in "The Wire", but the longing for a way out isn't any less understandable.

Mia, fifteen, living with her drunk of a single mom and her little sister, Tyler. Mia's suspended from school. A rebellious and fight-picking outcast looking to get away from her fish tank. Dreaming of making it as a professional dancer. Getting out of there thanks to her moves. Anything but her everyday life as she knows it. Life might just have something else in mind. Her mother's new boyfriend comes into their life, and we get to take part in Mia's changes.

Arnold takes us on an interesting journey. Not only is her description of Brit's white trash life perfectly accurate, but she manages to get all those small details right: The anticipation of what's about to happen, from a person who knows what's coming. The desperation in a run. The hope in a touch. I'm equal amounts of impressed and worried, as it just takes a certain kind of knowledge and experiences to get right so much of what she brings to this movie.