300: Fish Tank

Fish Tank is an interesting title in the latest edition of The 1001 Films To See Before You Die. It was to be expected that Avatar, Inglorious Basterds and Precious would be included due to the bundles of awards under their arms, their well-respected directors and the billions of dollars they took at the Box Office, but Fish Tank (only director Andrea Arnold's second film) has little reputation by comparison and is included in the book on its merits alone. Fish Tank focusses on the life of 15 year-old Mia (Katie Jarvis), an aggressive, foul mouthed loner and her mother Joanne (Kierston Wareing) and sister Tyler (Rebecca Griffiths), all of whom become reinvigorated with the arrival Connor (Michael Fassbender), Mia's Mother's new boyfriend.

Fish Tank is a very interesting modern British Film, with a very heavy emphasis on British. Like many other offerings of recent years it focuses on life within a council estate and the effects of the education system and family life on young people. The theme of family runs straight through the film, it is questionable as to whether Mia has a family of any sort, her sister is abusive, her mother moreso. The only moments where a family dynamic seems established is when Fassbender's Connor appears and quickly assumes an encouraging fatherly role, albeit a little too quickly to be comfortable. Nothing remains constant in Mia's life, her mother's attitude towards her changes as quickly as the weather, her school is changing and her family too, though she rarely changes her greying hoodie.

Fish Tank rests on Katie Jarvis' portrayal of Mia, with no previous acting experience before Fish Tank (not even a bit part in Waterloo Road) Jarvis' performance is astonishing and vicious. It is perhaps telling that she was spotted by a talent scout in the very area the film is set, Jarvis acts like she knows every bleak detail of the neighbourhood, every crack in the pavement and every can by the roadside. Michael Fassbender's portrayal of Connor is equally profound, at no point does Connor's prescence ever feel comfortable, Connor is over-friendly to the point of being creepy, Fassbender can just flick a look in one direction and make you feel uneasy. Kierston Wareing and Rebecca Griffiths feel like secondary characters, but both of their frantic performances are not easily forgotton, Griffiths in particular makes Hit Girl look timid.

Fish Tank does not present any revolutionary new camera techniques, it does not change "the game" in any way or heave intolerable amounts of "grit" or "darkness" into the story which many British films have a tendency to do at the moment. What it does do is demonstrate the power of brilliant performances and an engaging script. One of the final, most heavy hitting moments of sadness comes when watching the credits which reads "With Thanks to the UK Film Council", a film such as Fish Tank demonstrates importance of this now redundant body in selecting and supporting the best British talent.