Urchin

“Mike (Frank Dillane), a homeless drug user on the streets of London, struggles to escape his own self-destructive patterns as he bounces from prison to the streets. Harris Dickinson, known as an actor from Beach Rats, Triangle of Sadness and Babygirl, has made a deeply empathetic, energetic and sharply imagined first feature, aided by Josée Deshaies’ nimble, supple cinematography and Alan Myson’s urgent musical score. Dickinson’s references might be the powerful British realist movement, led by Alan Clarke, Mike Leigh and Ken Loach. But Urchin offers us so much more than an examination of a persistent social problem. He masterfully modulates grim and comic tones and, thanks to Dillane’s inspired, mercurial performance, gives Mike a Dostoevskian complexity. He’s charismatic, volatile and incredibly alive. Dillane brings an unstoppable energy to this vivid and highly original work, immersing us in the mystery of human compulsion.”
–Larry Gross, Telluride Film Festival

Directed by Harris Dickinson