Fish Tank

A fifteen year old girl living in a run down British housing project is so angry about her life that she has alienated everyone in it. To ease away her mounting frustrations, she steals into an abandoned apartment building and pours all her anger into dance, mimicking hip-hop moves that she has seen on television and in videos. Watching Katie Jarvis as Mia dance is such a strange and provocative phenomenon. Technically she is doing all the correct steps, but there is a stiffness about it, an emotional disconnect. Like if she really lets her emotions go, she would lose all control. This is a girl, closed off and cynical. She is angry with the entire world and no one is going to touch her.

When Mia’s mother (Charlotte Collins) takes in a new boyfriend (Michael Fassbender) he shows Mia a kindness and sympathy that she has long forgotten. When he compliments her on her dancing, the one thing in her life she feels good about, her steely demeanor starts to soften. She begins to hope, show interest and care. But when the harsh realities of life come rushing back in, any romantic notions or teenage pipe dreams are quickly swept away. Mia must now cope with the truth.

This unsentimental film will sadden you but at the same time show you the resilience of the human spirit. Fish Tank could take place anywhere in the world. When children grow up with little parental care in a social system that can barely keep track of them, they must grow up fast and learn to take fend for themselves. This is Mia’s story, but there are many girls just like her. There is a root and reason for all that anger.

Rating: First Run The truth behind the anger