Some Voices (2000)

A schizophrenic causes havoc in his brother's restaurant.

Director:

Simon Cellan Jones

Writer:

Joe Penhall

Stars:

Daniel Craig, David Morrissey, Kelly Macdonald

2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview:
Daniel Craig	...	Ray
David Morrissey	...	Pete
Kelly Macdonald	...	Laura
Julie Graham	...	Mandy
Peter McDonald	...	Dave
Nicholas Palliser	...	Ray's Friend
Huss Garbiya	...	Man with Mobile
Edward Tudor-Pole	...	Lighter Seller (as Edward Tudor Pole)
Ashley Walters	...	Kitchen Hand
Gem Durham	...	Cashier
Cate Fowler	...	Benefits Agency Woman

Storyline

A schizophrenic causes havoc in his brother's restaurant.

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Plot Keywords:

restaurant | male frontal nudity | mistreatment | mental patient | hallucination | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 August 2000 (UK)

Also Known As:

Algumas Vozes

Filming Locations:

Goldhawk Road, Shepherd's Bush, London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dragon Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Laura: Squeeze the breath out of me. It makes me feel safe.

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Connections

Features Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons (1967)

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Soundtracks

"Goodbye Girl"
Written by Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford
Courtesy of Rondor Music (London) LTD
Performed by Squeeze
Courtesy of A&M Records/Mercury Records LTD (London)
Licenced by kind permission from The Film & TV Licencing Division Part Of The Universal Music Group

User Reviews

So much more than just a comedy

Ray is a schizophrenic who has been released form care back to his brother. He is on his medication and he is fine – enjoying life but wandering a lot. He meets a girl, Laura when she and her boyfriend are having a fight in the street. At first she dislikes him but the more he tries to get to know her the more she gives in to him. The pair go off to Hastings for a while and fall for each other – despite the worries of Ray's brother Dave.

I taped as it was billed as a comedy and I thought I'd give it a go. To call it a comedy is to not even tell half the story. It is funny in many places and has an enjoyable light air to most of it, but it is so much more than just another romantic `boy meets girl' British comedy. It is actually a sensitive look at mental illness through our view of Ray. He is allowed to be a person rather than a stereotype and as a result we care more about the plot but also sympathise with all the characters a lot more.

It hurt me to see Ray struggling when not on his meds. He is a real person and just struggling in this way. In real life I may have been in the street bemused by him rather than interesting in finding out who was behind the illness. Also when Dave is worried about him and feels he can't trust him, we side with Ray and see Ray's point, whereas in real life many of us would have our doubts just like Dave. This doesn't mean it's perfect as the plot has weaknesses. The romance in the centre doesn't always ring true and the climax, although dramatic, is an extreme for dramatic effect, but overall it works.

This is mainly due to a good strong script with real characters as well as good acting all round. Craig is really good as Ray – I never doubted him for a second and his portrayal is never lazy cliché for a second. McDonald's Dave is a less sympathetic figure but well acted and Macdonald's Laura is good once we are over the way she is very easily won over by Ray. The direction is really good and avoids being arty in it's use of images. I don't know what it's like to see things an hear things like Ray is, but here it is brought to the screen as well and as tastefully as could be expected.

Overall this is a comedy and can be enjoyed as such for at least half the film. But more than this the film goes deeper and is a wonderful look at schizophrenia without going into detail but rather giving us a real character and even helping `normal' (read `ignorant') people like me understand what it's like for people like Ray.