Film

Raindance review: Rebels without a Clue

Rebecca Sear | Friday 1 October, 2010 16:06

Director Ian Vernon
Country UK

The action in Rebels without a Clue stems from, as all good adventures do, teenage boredom. Damien (Stefan Gumbs) and Mark (Rik Barnett) are two 16 year old school friends who get their kicks from hiding in undergrowth, smoking and pondering life, whilst taking pot shots at passing sheep/sexual exhibitionists. So far, so Trainspotting. They think they’ve hit prime target practice when two serious looking chaps pull up. However, when a seemingly harmless shot causes one of the men to be killed with a real gun it becomes apparent that these men do not fall into the categories of cattle or thrill-seeking lovers. The killer flees the scene, and the boys discover the reason for the covert meeting: a sizeable package of cocaine and a rucksack of cash. Our thrill-seeking protagonists decide that if they can dispose of the body then the coke, money and dealer’s car (a swish Cadillac—not at all out of place on the moors of Northern England) will be their passage to Spain. Or France. Or somewhere.

The boys set off with their half-baked plan and pick up Damian’s gobby girlfriend Kylie (Lucy Brenan) and her undead goth mate Beth (Cat Dowling), and attempt to find a place to bury the body. However, frozen ground and a deficiency in common sense aren’t their only enemies. The enraged rightful recipient of the cocaine, at the orders of ‘The Boss’, is hot in pursuit. The boys must lose the corpse, the thug and their virginity in eighty minutes, and presumably get an early night for school in the morning.

In what is a charmingly written script, the virtually unknown young actors and actresses have an obvious rapport which is what makes this film credible. Barnett, who plays Mark,( or ‘wanker’, as he is affectionately referred to throughout) is able to switch seamlessly between the genuinely touching dialogue about his father to keeping up the dim-witted banter with Damien. Gumb’s character has some of the best comedic lines throughout due to his paranoia about racial ‘prejudice’ (despite his mum being from Liverpool) and his hilariously aggressive girlfriend provides a brilliant supporting role with some fabulously stupid one-liners: ‘shouldn’t we cut his hands off or something? I saw it in a film!’ but the only weak link of the four is Beth (Dowling). Whist she has angsty teen to a ‘t’ her inability to deliver serious dialogue is a little too reminiscent of Byker Grove , thus making serious scenes a little more cringe worthy than credible.

What makes Rebels a great piece of British cinema is the blend of cinematography and soundtrack. Shot using the Red One Camera (think Che Part 1&2) in a haze of autumnal tones on the bleak Saddleworth moors of Northern England, the film is almost too beautiful to be a comedy. Set to a plinky-plonky piano soundtrack featuring Satie’s Gymnopedies—an interesting choice considering the subject matter- it is clear why this film won best soundtrack and cinematography in the Ibiza Film Festival recently.

Rebels without a Clue is nominated for Best UK Feature at Raindance Film Festival this year and is up against four other films including Nazi puppet extravaganza Jackboot’s on Whitehall which boasts and all-star British cast and BBC-produced Five Daughters, the story of the 2006 Ipswich murders. Rebels is a film which deserves to do so well. Featuring young, fresh British acting talent and a very convincing portrayal of teenagerdom, along with a carefully thought-out plot and vision from writer and director Ian Vernon. Made on a miniscule budget of only £100,000, which required a remortgage of the director’s home, it is a labour of love which uses it’s smallness to its favour. It may not have the support of a well-known cast or be approved by the BBC, but that’s where its strength lies, and it certainly deserves to stand alongside the other nominations as a film showcasing the best of British.

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