Flicks, Aaron Yap
Rufus Norris’ debut feature Broken sits uncomfortably between two schools of Brit filmmaking: the coming-of-age warm-heartedness of Shane Meadows, Billy Elliot et al, and the kitchen sink grittiness of Mike Leigh and Ken Loach. He hasn’t quite nailed the tonal juggling act yet; as such the film feels prosaic, and punishingly one-note in its grimness, throwing all manner of timely button-pushers - false rape accusations, mental illness, single parenting, teenage sex - into the pot in the hope that something sticks. It basically amounts to a contrived, feel-bad suburban melodrama where a series of head-slapping misunderstandings lead to everyone being as miserable as possible.
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