Though Jack Lowden’s often talked of as a potential Bond, the supremely gifted actor doesn’t need a franchise to put him on the map. Age 31, he’s as soulful-looking as Tom Hiddleston and as cheeky as Simon Pegg. Which comes in handy for this mercurial portrait of WWI poet Siegfried Sassoon. Lowden’s convincing as a playful charmer who when faced with horrors doesn’t know whether to laugh or scream.
Though stuffed with big houses and beautiful toffs, the latest offering from British writer-director, Terence Davies, was never going to seduce the Downton Abbey set. It’s too experimental; too slow. Nor will it convert those who found The Deep Blue Sea histrionic and/or A Quiet Passion uneven. But if you love Davies, you’ll know what to expect and be transported by scenes that hint at deep feelings, as opposed to nailing them down.
