Fish Tank

Fish Tank is that rare indie import. It takes a familiar volatile situation and makes it livable, unpredictable, and free of clich�.

Using a girl she found on a train station, Director Andrea Arnold makes a star of young Katie Jarvis who plays central character Mia. Having grown up in a single parent household run by a woman who would rather drink and screw than raise a daughter, Mia is a mess of confused emotions, hormones, and intentions.

Not getting along with any of the girls in the neighborhood, Mia's only freedom is when she sneaks into an empty apartment, puts on some music, and dances. But no, this isn't one of those dance movies where the girl breaks out of her stifled existence because all she wants to do is dance. The dancing is simply an expression of an unattainable dream. With mom threatening to send her to a boarding school, Mia is more desperate than ever to break out of the "fish tank" she finds herself in.

Wandering the streets in the same dirty pair of sweatpants and black hoodie, Mia becomes an aimless figure, trying to break free but being constantly drawn back home. When she runs into her mom's new boyfriend as he wanders half naked through the apartment, Mia's interest is peeked. Perhaps he is the hook that will swoop her out of the tank.

Played effortlessly by the sexy and warm Michael Fassbender (Inglorious Basterds), Connor is a fascinating character. Seemingly the only person who treats Mia with respect, Mia becomes attached. Maybe a bit too attached, and so does he. We want to love him throughout, but he too proves to not be the bastion of stability he attempts to portray.

Mia's life is shown in short scenes that seem to be going nowhere but at the same time, they speed fast toward the film's ultimate resolution. The gunk and grime of Mia's home town is both gross and breathtaking as Arnold finds the beauty in moments like a sunset filtered through the cracks and dirt of an apartment window.

But it is Jarvis that is truly extraordinary. Plucked from obscurity with no acting experience, she is both natural and commanding. You can't take your eyes off of her, and you shouldn't, because she easily drives the film to it's hopeful, yet guarded conclusion.
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