Flashbacks of a fool

When not on a James Bond mission, or pretending to talk to animated cats in The Golden Compass,

Daniel Craig, is actually one of the UK’s finest, serious actors.
Before going back into the world of 007 he took a break by signing on to writer/director Baillie Walsh’s feature debut, an artsy movie called Flashbacks of a Fool.

From the movie trailer, starring such an A-list celebrity as Daniel Craig, to the opening credit sequence of a night with booze, coke and hookers, we are meant to assume that the playboy narcissist Joe Scot (Daniel Craig) is in a very bad way. We could have expect a load of drug taking scenes and thought the whole film would have a dirty feel to it, drifting to a shallow entertainment, but Baillie Walsh's film is sincere about its portrayal of moral burnout, impressively directed, a genuinely moving drama about making peace with the past.

Beautiful even in his drug-addled 40s, Daniel Craig plays a Hollywood fading actor, living a direction-less, lonely life in his opulent Malibu mansion whilst outside his popularity is at its lowest. The death of his childhood best friend prompts him to journey back home to his English seaside hometown. He begins to think about his life over the years, and more specifically his teenage years. Confronted by tragedy he is forced to face up to the ghosts of his past.

Flashback to 1970's England and small town life set to the beat of Roxy Music and David Bowie. Joe's rites of passage as a young man (Harry Eden) in a tiny British seaside community lay the foundations for the Hollywood dream he goes on to experience. His budding sexuality, his boyhood camaraderie, the untoward advances of a voluptuous older woman and his teenage actions lead to unforeseen, tragic consequences, which will ultimately force him to run away in search of a new life.

The performances are fantastic, with each member of the cast creating strong characters. However, the stand-out is rising British star Felicity Jones, who's simply magnetic, particularly in the film's key scene where Joe and Ruth shared mutual love of David Bowie and Roxy Music.
Writer-director Baillie Walsh creates a strong sense of period atmosphere, with a carefully chosen soundtrack and the idyllic seaside location.
Though the film was mainly shot in Cape Town, South Africa. Slightly confusing for whose who know these landscape, as the director doesn’t establish a fairly important part of the beach's geography earlier in the film. In spite this tiny mistake, the script covers up very well the real reason Joe leaves home until the last moment, while the central theme of making peace with the past is extremely moving.

Flashbacks of a Fool is a well made, beautifully acted drama, nostalgia-fulled, that wraps a powerful emotional blow. Bravo to Daniel Craig for helping to get such a personal project made, and to his friend Walsh for putting his heart and soul into it.

Published in www.deadfoxfanzine.com