One of the greatest British actors of his generation, Gary Oldman highlighted this indie coming of age drama as one of his favourites.
In terms of British exports to the rest of the world, one of the island’s products has got to be Gary Oldman. Born in New Cross, London, the master of disguise got his start in the theatre before appearing in various domestic films like Sid and Nancy, in which he played Sid Vicious of Sex Pistols fame, and Shakespeare spin-off Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. He quickly used this as a platform to conquer the rest of the world, but he lost sight of his British routes. He won his Oscar for playing Winston Churchill, for goodness sake. It doesn’t get much more British than that.
Oldman owes his entire career to small British films, as he was inspired to become an actor by watching Malcolm McDowell in an obscure drama. This was represented when he was asked by Rotten Tomatoes to name his five favourite movies. Among American classics like Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, and The Godfather: Part II (he likes Coppola, ok?), he named a “small indie movie” from 1999.
“A Lynne Ramsay movie called Ratcatcher,” he said, rounding out his picks. “I just think it’s a masterful piece of filmmaking.” He went on to mention other contenders, mainly the works of Stanley Kubrick and Martin Scorsese, but settled on Ratcatcher as his fifth and final selection.
Ratcatcher is the debut film from Scottish director Ramsay, who was also behind the camera for You Were Never Really Here and We Need to Talk About Kevin. Set in her native Glasgow, the film follows a 12-year-old boy named Jamie (William Eadie). It kicks off in a pretty grim fashion as Jamie watches his friend Ryan (Thomas McTaggart) drown in an accident. This results in a string of unfortunate encounters, as the young lad meets various other damaged children against the backdrop of the city’s poorest areas.
As bleak as Ratcatcher is, some people absolutely love it, calling it an essential coming-of-age movie that doesn’t pull its punches in exploring what it means to grow up in poverty. There are obvious comparisons to Danny Boyle’s Trainspotting for its Scottish setting and portrayal of a dark underbelly. Still, its child protagonist puts it more in line with Ken Loach’s Kes or Shane Meadows’ This is England.
The Sirius Black actor isn’t the only one who’s a big fan of Ramsay’s work. Ratcatcher was screened at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival and was then nominated for ‘Outstanding British Film’ at the BAFTAs, sharing the category with the likes of Notting Hill and East is East. While it didn’t win, it was awarded the ‘Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer’ trophy that same evening. The fact that it was made entirely by novices – Ramsay recruited a bunch of her friends from film school to help with its production – only makes this feat more impressive.
Given that he’s such a big fan of hers, it’s a shame Oldman hasn’t been to collaborate with Ramsay on anything. The director’s next film, Die My Love, has already announced a cast that includes Jennifer Lawrence, LaKeith Stansfield, and Robert Pattinson, but sadly, there is no Oldman. Whilst there’s still time for him to make a cameo, fans of British cinema will have to keep on waiting to see these two geniuses put their minds together.
