Film Review - Small Things Like These
Images courtesy of Roadshow Films.
Small Things Like These is a poignant title for an arresting film, as it’s the little uncomfortable things director Tim Mielants wants you to become familiar with. Set in 1980’s Ireland, the film explores the moral complexities of a town living with a Magdalene Laundry, laundries that were solely for women who became pregnant out of wedlock, and were punished by working until they gave birth, and their child was taken away. There's a lot that has and will be written about this period of history so I’ll leave it to the experts to grapple with, and instead focus on what Mielants wants the audience to leave with.
It’s a deliberately deceivingly violent film, not necessarily for its bloodshed but for its one big secret - the systematic and brutal oppression of women. The deep intensity of the secret starts from the beginning of the film, as we meet Cillian Murphy’s character Bill at the precipice of his moral dilemma; will he speak out about the laundries? Or will he choose to stay silent and remain complicit? Cillian Murphy’s portrayal of a man that's anxious and churning is spectacular, he barely speaks and yet seems to shout his every thought, making his character feel real and complicated. This agitation from Bill is masterfully enhanced by the sound design, his breathing is almost constantly monitored and then highlighted when his breaths become laboured, bringing a visceral depth to his internal conflict. It's these little details that create a picture of a town that feels delicately balanced, and as Bill continually fractures the peace with wandering glances and veiled conversations, the subtlety of the secret and church’s power begins to unravel.
The choice to end the film as abruptly as it does bestows the feature with a self-awareness that is delightfully unsatisfactory. Despite Bill saving one woman from the laundry’s fate, he doesn’t tear down the walls only to go on and rescue every woman in Ireland…the film simply ends. Just as the screen goes black, the film dedicates the story to the women who experienced the laundries until they closed in 1996, a mere 10 years after Bill’s actions. It calls into question the fictional nature of the story; if Bill’s actions were real would this have continued for another 10 years? Would less people have stayed silent if the atrocities were pointed out? This tale suddenly feels very fictional and the weight of silence feels stronger than ever - a powerful ending to a delicately crafted film.
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Small Things Like These is now screening in cinemas.