Thoughts from the committee
The debut of acclaimed Scottish filmmaker Lynne Ramsay (Morvern Callar, You Were Never Really Here, Die My Love), Ratcatcher is as emotionally raw and unexpectedly sweet as any of her subsequent work.
Set in 1970s Glasgow, Ratcatcher centres on twelve-year-old James (William Eadie) who has to live with himself after accidentally and anonymously causing the drowning death of another boy. James finds various levels of relief in relationships with his dysfunctional family, an older girl who is being sexually abused by a neighbourhood gang and another boy who is obsessed with animals. Even as the streets of Glasgow fill with garbage (literally—the bin men are on strike and scab labour is on its way), James holds out hope for a better environment when his family is eventually rehoused.
It’s these moments of hope and sensitivity that prevent Ratcatcher from being oppressively bleak and distinguish Ramsay from other directors of British social realism. Ramsay has a knack for elevating even the most depressing topics with poetic (and occasionally magical realist) flourishes. The premise of any one of her films might sound like a bingo card of miserabilism but they’re all genuinely compelling and sometimes even fun.
“Despite the authenticity that emanates from the film’s performances, locations, and production design, Ramsay has declared that she did not want to make a film about “gritty Glasgow.” Instead, she was drawn to capturing parts of the city that struck her as “ugly beautiful,” that lent themselves to her lyrical expressivity.” – Girish Shambu, Criterion