Submarine (2010)

Adapted from the novel written by Joe Dunthorne and directed by the brilliant Richard Ayoade, ‘Submarine’ is a film that I had high hopes for, and I can whole-heartedly say that I was not disappointed in the slightest. If you like quirky coming-of-age films that will definitely make you laugh and possibly even shed a tear, then carry on reading because I may have just found your new favourite film.

This charming teen drama presents us with the ever-endearing and hopelessly awkward Oliver Tate and his trials and tribulations as he navigates his way through young love, his parent’s marital troubles and attempting to discover himself in those confusing formative years we all experience. Told from the point of view of Oliver, we see his hilarious affectations and social blunders in all their glory – despite him believing himself to be the smooth-talking hero that will get the edgy yet ‘moderately unpopular’ girl, stop his mum from running off with a mystic and achieve the most epic biopic of his life. Although not all of us experienced such a peculiar teenage life, we’ve all had awkward moments, we’ve all had a crush, we’ve all been at that age where you want to be able to fix everything but not quite had the impact we wished due to our tender age. The character of Oliver Tate is so funny and almost nostalgic as most people can relate to him and sympathise with him too, trust me, you’ll find yourself routing for this delightfully awkward protagonist and his heroic agenda.

Personally, I loved this film. The plot is easy to follow but never boring in the slightest. You find yourself becoming invested in the life of this fifteen-year-old duffle-coated schoolboy and won’t want to stop watching until you know if he actually does execute all of his intricate plans and get a happy ending for himself and the people he cares about. If you’re typically a fan of traditional films and how they’re shot however, you may find this film a slight shock to system and maybe a little to artsy for your liking due to the experimental camera shots and heavy focus on cinematography in this film. Despite this, I would encourage anyone to give this film a go regardless as although I think the imagery in the film is beautiful, it doesn’t rely on that or take away from the plot I assure you. Another aspect of the film I loved was the soundtrack (which is done entirely by Alex Turner, the lead singer of the arctic monkeys) as every single song seems to fit the atmosphere of the scene perfectly.

A scene I particularly enjoyed was the scene under the bridge where Oliver and Jordana shared their first kiss. This scene showcases many different camera angles, therefore this scene is good one to show the interesting camera work in this film. The scene begins with a wide shot which pans across as Oliver walks to Jordana under the bridge (allowing you to see the beauty of the scenery around them), which then switches to a low angle shot from behind Oliver which allows us to catch a glimpse of Jordana (these low angle shots showing Jordana continue throughout the scene which gives us the impression that she is superior to Oliver, or at least in his mind). The scene then goes into a variation of zoom shots and close ups that zoom into an extreme close up to show Oliver’s concerned looks and Jordana’s mysterious smirk and suggestive eyes. I really enjoyed the almost erratic camera work in this scene and the use of the sound of an oncoming train which most likely reflected Oliver’s anxiousness in this scene as he was took by surprise with a kiss from the girl that he fancies.

I would most definitely recommend this film to anyone, but in particular people that enjoy coming-of-age films and anything artsy and heavy on cinematography due to the styles that film uses. I don’t know what other films I could compare ‘Submarine’ to due to its uniqueness, but the film definitely lends itself to the indie genre of film and also gives a nod to French new wave cinema.