Scrapper is a charming, eventually quite involving film about a precocious 12-year-old who's been living by her wits since her mother's death, at least until she's unwillingly reunited with her childlike absentee dad. Some of the opening scenes may seem like your basic indie-film filler--Georgie and her friend Ali goofing around on the grounds of the tidy, brightly painted council estate where they live (looks like the color scheme was suggested by Wes Anderson, btw)--but her deep-fake phone call that convinces "the Social" that she's being looked after by her imaginary uncle is pure comedy gold and totally won me over.
In any case, the pace picks up right away as soon as Dad 's back in the picture. The dialogue's sharp and funny; they both seem to be on the same level as far as emotional maturity goes, and they both have a gift for the same kind of lippy banter. Once in a while the camera cuts away to a chorus of neighborhood kids who comment on what's going on, mostly disapprovingly. The outcome of the father-daughter reunion, though predictable, is still quite moving without being sentimental. Big props to w/d Charlotte Regan--I hope she pitched this one as Paper Moon meets the Florida Project--and to the set dressers or whoever threw together the ceiling-scraping monument that Georgie erects in her mother's bedroom. Highly recommended!
In any case, the pace picks up right away as soon as Dad 's back in the picture. The dialogue's sharp and funny; they both seem to be on the same level as far as emotional maturity goes, and they both have a gift for the same kind of lippy banter. Once in a while the camera cuts away to a chorus of neighborhood kids who comment on what's going on, mostly disapprovingly. The outcome of the father-daughter reunion, though predictable, is still quite moving without being sentimental. Big props to w/d Charlotte Regan--I hope she pitched this one as Paper Moon meets the Florida Project--and to the set dressers or whoever threw together the ceiling-scraping monument that Georgie erects in her mother's bedroom. Highly recommended!