A celebration of nature and unexpected friendship is wonderfully quirky and heartfelt.
Some of the best films are ones which are wonderfully understated and somehow slip under the radar when it comes to all of the big blockbusters released and This Beautiful Fantastic is one of those films.
Written and directed by Simon Aboud, This Beautiful Fantastic follows the story of Bella (Jessica Brown Findlay), a woman who has never lived life conventionally and how her life is transformed with the help of her next door neighbour Alfie Stephenson (Tom Wilkinson) and Vernon (Andrew Scott) – when she is threatened with eviction for not taking care of her garden properly.
From beginning to end it is made clear that this not a conventional film with in terms of the types of characters in the story as well as the way in which it has been filmed. With every shot, the audience picks up every last detail that has been wonderfully captured, bringing to mind a quirky French style film that could have potentially gone into more depth about mental health and the impact it has on Bella’s day-to-day life.
Some might find the film’s gentle and laid back approach slightly twee, but because of the genuinely heartwarming friendship that develops between the unlikely trio and the interesting characterisations throughout, the audience is drawn into the story with ease and no fuss.
Thanks to Jessica Brown Findlay’s performance as Bella, to watch the character delicately come out of her lonely existence is delightful and heartwarming. Findlay clearly relishes the character’s quirks with mannerisms which could become repetitive but instead come across as natural and generate sympathy from the audience.
There is also ample support from Tom Wilkinson as Bella’s grumpy and gardening enthusiast next door neighbour Alfie, gives a charismatic performance that is warmly endearing – particularly when he decides to help Bella. Andrew Scott it has to be said is perhaps awkwardly placed in this film as Vernon – never truly looking comfortable and not given as much to do as he could have been (except for cooking a lot of food throughout!) . Anna Chancellor is suitably brisk and delightful to watch as Bramble, while Jeremy Irvine as the bumbling inventor Billie gives a likeable performance.
Overall, This Beautiful Fantastic is a wonderfully charming and quirky film that has been beautifully captured by Simon Aboud.
This Beautiful Fantastic will be available on to watch on Digital Download from 5th March and can be bought here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/movie/this-beautiful-fantastic/id1334768584?at=1001lnNr
Rating: ❤❤❤❤