In surreal / supernatural tinged Brit-drama "The Drowning Of Arthur Braxton" miserable titular teen James Tarpey (terrific) is bullied at school (by Keith Rice & Ben Hawkey) & neglected at home (by alcoholic single slob dad Johnny Vegas). His only solace is an abandoned old public baths building (set for demolition) where he meets girl 'ghosts' Sophie Wright & Rebecca Hanssen (falling for the latter) and their 'dad' Malcolm Freeman... but is something sinister behind the girls, Freeman and/or the building? Director / co-writer (with Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou) Luke Cutforth doesn't wrap it up totally satisfactorily, but it's still a fresh, engaging & original tale.

Dear oh dear! Very disappointing indeed. This film really doesn't know what it wants to be - one minute it's all teenage angst, then it's coming of age, modern mystery, Victorian ghost melodrama, morality lesson about the dangers of drink... and probably a few more besides. It starts confusing and ends just as bad - the key character and hiss arch protagonist suddenly change attitudes 180 degrees but it is never properly explained why. Despite the negatives though I must say it was well cast, well shot and well directed - it's the story line which lets it down so badly. About the only thing I enjoyed were the location shots in the old, abandoned swimming baths which I believe to be in Manchester - I well remember learning to swim in a near identical baths in Bury.

The Drowning of Arthur Braxton (based on the book by Caroline Smailes) is a film I first found out about around five years ago and backed on Kickstarter! I avidly followed each update, awaiting the day director Luke Cutforth would announce the release of the film and was not disappointed when it finally happened!

Winner of Best UK Feature at the 2021 Raindance Film Festival, The Drowning of Arthur Braxton is best summed up by director Luke Cutforth: "An unflinching account of the pain of adolescence and how first love can transform the most unhappy of lives into something miraculous."

The Drowning of Arthur Braxton centres around the life of a teenage boy, Arthur Braxton (James Tarpey). Arthur is relentlessly bullied at school whilst dealing with the challenges of being a young carer for his alcoholic depressive father (Johnny Vegas). Along the way, a siren song leads him to discover Delphina (Rebecca Hanssen) swimming in an abandoned bath house that's scheduled for demolition. Arthur's life starts to spiral dangerously out of control and Delphina becomes his escape. There's something mystical at play.

Luke and his team captured the essence of the book perfectly, blending the real world experiences with the fantastical. Born out of a lot of love, dedication and hard work, the film is a definite must see which I wouldn't hesitate to recommend to anyone!