A Long Way Down

Many of British author Nick Hornby’s charming novels have been given the Hollywood treatment and been adapted into critically acclaimed movies, and A Long Way Down is the latest. So what’s this whimsical, humourous tale about then? Suicide. (Yep.)

Four lost souls who seemingly have nothing left to live for all happen to attempt to end it all by jumping off the same rooftop. Being that they all wanted to die in private, they decide to form a support group of sorts to make sure none of them having gone through with their dark intentions. These four have absolutely nothing in common either. You have Martin (Pierce Brosnan), a former television show host disgraced for unintentionally sleeping with an underage girl; Maureen (Toni Collette) is an out of touch mum whose sole purpose in life is to look after her disabled son; JJ (Aaron Paul) is a struggling musician disheartened by the perils of trying to make it in the music biz; and Jess (Imogen Poots) is a free spirited girl confined by her politician father’s (Sam Neill) public actions.

Suicide isn’t what you’d normally call a laughing matter, but the British are known for their dry sense of humour, and it’s not like it’s encouraging it. In fact, it deals with the situation quite delicately and leaves you with a smile on your face. It’s got quite an eclectic cast too; this movie’s got James Bond, Muriel and Jesse Pinkman all in one movie. What a mix!

A Long Way Down will only screen as part of the British Film Festival while it’s in Melbourne, so if you want to see it, head over to the British Film Festival website.

A Long Way Down
Screening from Wednesday 5 November – Wednesday 26 November
britishfilmfestival.com.au/films/a-long-way-down