Directed by Shimmy Marcus
Joe (Martin Compston) lives in Stoke-on-Trent and has a fairly ordinary existence. He is a deliveryman by day and spends his nights drinking beer at the local pub The Onion with his best friend Russ (Alfie Allen). That is unless they have some petty thievery planned. When the tongue-tied Joe wants to impress local hairdresser Jane (Nichola Burley), he ends up at a nightclub in the nearby town of Wigan. He discovers a whole breed of young people are wearing singlets, carrying Adidas bags and dancing to the point of exhaustion to some imported music. It is 1974 and somehow the industrial town of Wigan has become the epicentre of soul music in Great Brittain.
As far as the beautiful Jane is concerned, well she is spoken for by the king pin of the Wigan Casino who swaggers around with a group of henchmen and has his own space on the dance floor. Nevertheless, Joe is determined to win her over and he gets his friend Mandy (Felicity Jones) to teach him the moves, not realising that Mandy has a crush on him. This British coming of age film faithfully recreates the era and is loaded with cheeky humour we associate with the North of England. The soundtrack and lively dance sequences are highlights of the film, even though some of the moves are somewhat outdated now. A great record of a priceless time in history when a group of teenagers going nowhere in a town the other side of the Atlantic decided to grab some soul for themselves.
SoulBoy is the opening film for the Perth Festival’s Joondalup Pines venue at Edith Cowan University. Gates open at 7pm and films start at 8pm until March. The film screens 29 November – 12 December and www.perthfestival.com.au has details and booking information.
Lezly Herbert
