Written by Alexander Reams
64/100
That beautiful sound of a car starting, the rumble of the engine, the smell of fuel in the air, a perfect cold start on a cold morning. Then the garage door opens, the light begins to leak through the slowly opening door, and what comes out is a moped? Yes, not a car, or even a motorcycle, a moped. An image that is constant where I live, these mini motorcycles have taken over more than actual motorcycles, a truly sad day for someone who loves classic motorcycles. A film about the British equivalent to bike culture in America seems like a film I would love, and you would be, partially, right.
Chris Green’s latest film goes into a classic genre, a road film. However, putting the genre on its head, with the road aspect not being in a car but on a mod, or a moped, as us Americans know it as. Following John (a very underrated Patrick McNamee), the son of a respected member of the mod community who takes a trip from his home in Manchester to Brighton, the “home” of the mod culture to scatter the ashes of his father. His mode of transportation? A mod left to him by his father. Following him is Nicki (a wonderfully badass Sasha Parkinson), who is along for the ride to see a band she desperately wants to see, and eventually Logan (a forgettable Max Boast).
The film is a very quick moving film and yet feels boring throughout the second act. This issue is due to the lack of meat given to the story and the actors during this time, a problem that falls on Writer/Director Chris Green. While this is his only major failing in those positions it still makes a big chunk of the film boring to watch, and any care I had begun to have for these characters fell apart during this time. Which I found to be a tragedy after that beautiful first act that was presented. The third act somewhat fulfills the goals presented in the first act, but it all falls on deaf ears after the horrendous second act. For a film about mod culture it rarely focuses on that, instead focusing on the, most of the time, brilliantly written characters, which does not take away from the film until you reach the second act. The film knows how to start up properly but never figures out how to drive and ends up hitting too many speed bumps by the end.
The Pebble and the Boy Trailer
The Pebble and the Boy will be available on most major VOD platforms November 16th.
You can connect with Alexander on his social media profiles: Instagram, Letterboxd, and Twitter. Or see more of his work on his website.
