HIGH HOPES: Sam Miller's "Among Giants"

INTRODUCTION: A film uniting the inestimable talents of the director of hit TV show "This Life" and the script-writer of multi-award winning film "The Full Monty" would seem too good to miss. But rest assured there is a reason that this film that shown at last years Birmingham Film Festival has been held back until the low season for release.

SYNOPSIS: Ray (Postlethwaite) and his room mate Steve (Thornton) are unemployed construction workers who while away their days climbing the Peaks of Derbyshire. When they are offered the chance to make some money off the books they quickly jump at it, and Ray puts together a rag tag band of his former colleagues and together they set out to repaint the temporarily deactivated electricity pylons of the district before the juice is switched back on.

They are soon joined by Australian backpacker Gerry (Griffiths) who Ray immediately signs up. Together they embark upon a miss-matched romance under the ever watchful eyes of the increasingly jealous Steve. It is doomed from the outset as Gerry is an inveterate wanderer and Ray is deeply rooted in his community.

Gerry's itchy feet soon take hold and before long she has moved her intentions onto the distinctly more mobile Steve, putting Ray and Steve's friendship under threat.

REVIEW: Beaufoy ably demonstrates that his film writing talent came relatively late in life, with a collection of under-written roles, limited class commentary and a few forced laughs. The film is a million miles from the fast moving controversy of Miller's previous TV work. Although a largely unnecessary sex scene replete with full frontals from Postlethwaite and Griffiths is crowbared in mid-film. Slow moving and for the most part un-engaging only the immense charisma of the leads saves this film.

Postlethwaite is never less than superb although there is little to stretch his immense talent here despite being the first romantic lead that the 52 year old has tackled in his distinguished career. Griffiths and Thornton provide strong support, but their underwritten roles once again never really provide them with anything to sink their teeth into as character development is kept to an absolute minimum. The rest of the cast is largely forgotten, relegated to purely functional roles commenting upon the triumvirate at the centre of the story.

Beaufoy invokes all the genre clich‚s, disgruntled workers, overdue pay-checks, loan-sharks, neglected ex-wives and working class Don Juanism, to increasingly lesser effect. To the point where even having the cast hanging a hundred feet in the air under the ever present risk of electrocution can do little to raise the tension level.

Witold Stok's cinematography makes exquisite use of the natural beauty of the Peak District, contrasting sharply with production designer Luana Hanson's grubby interiors. Conveying more of the mind numbing misery of these men's existence than Beaufoy's script ever aspires to. Elen Pierce Lewis' sharp editing and Tim Atack's rousing score can do little to lift this poorly plotted and slackly directed rom-com out of the doldrums.

I had high hopes for this potentially refreshing alternative to the saccharine rom-coms that Hollywood churns out but ultimately it is unable to live up to the promise of its premise.

MUTT'S RATING: Among Giants: **

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