Hallam Foe

David MacKenzie, Uk, 2007, 95 minutes

If Sigmund Freud had decided to move to Scotland, ditch psychology and take up a career in directing then quite possibly he would have come up with a film such as ‘Hallam Foe’. At the very least he would have approved of the film’s basic plot – where Jamie Bell’s Hallam falls in love with a woman who looks disturbingly (or not, in Freud’s case) like his mother.

The poor lad’s troubles all begin with her death and are mainly aggravated by his subsequent reclusion into a tree house, where his closest companion is a stuffed badger. Here he spies on the world to his heart’s (dis)content, until he begins to suspect that his dastardly evil step mother had a hand in topping his mum. Whether this is his fragile mind at work or not is never totally explained, but no matter: he runs off to find a marginally unlikely, but fantastically picturesque hiding place.

This is the point in the film where, regardless what you think of the plot, or anything else for that matter, whether you are familiar with Edinburgh as a tourist or student or local or sad google-maps obsessive, you really just have to turn up and drunkenly slur “Look! They’re on Cockburn Street!” And even if you’re not familiar with the town, even if you subconsciously hate the place because you’re Glaswegian, you’ve got to admit that Edinburgh does make a pretty backdrop for a film. Especially when shot on the roofs of the old town as Hallam loups about and slyly keeks in windaes. This beautifully pictured setting adds an extra dimension to the aesthetically pleasing direction and the sad, soul-searching tale of our protagonist. The plot develops with a nice mix of lies and desperation, and features, amongst other things, Edinburgh looking twinkly, people watching sex through attic windows and looking horrified, shock revelations, third person perspectives and much washing of dishes. This excellent film is only slightly disturbing, and is another example of Edinburgh being an iconic city in films. And presumably you’re reading this because you’re in the Edinburgh University Film Society, so really you have no excuse…

Review by Lewis Williamson
Written for EUFS Programme Autumn 2007