Fish Tank User Reviews

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About

 A 15 year old girl Mia (Katie Jarvis), comes from the British slums and is almost always causing trouble, whether it's being kicked out of school, drinking on the streets or fighting. Her family has a mutual hate for her and Mia finds escapism in hip-hop street dance. Her life becomes more complicated when her mother Joanne (Kierston Wareing) brings home her new boyfriend, Connor (Michael Fassbender), Mia instantly develops a crush on him while also befriending Billy (Harry Treadaway).    Good
 This is a really nice, fresh Indie film. I'm British myself and I never really like British-made movies, since I feel they over-exaggerate but 'Fish Tank' uses it's focus on realism and really upholds it, finding the right balance of 'gritty' and 'realistic' without needing to exaggerate stereotypes. Michael Fassbender is really great in his large role as Connor, he plays the role very well, I felt him very genuine as a nice-guy type who has something to hide (he's also nice eye candy). Mia's mother, played by Kierston Wareing physically and emotionally embodies the 'bad mother' role very well. Considering it was Katie Jarvis' first ever acting role, I was pleasantly surprised and impressed.  
 
    
                                                                                                                       

Bad

  There isn't much bad I could say really, my main problem was that there was no real progression in the storyline at all, it sort of all hit the audience all at once. I also thought the ending was just disappointing, there is a certain scene where I felt it should've ended and it needed to end with a mystery or 'what next?'.  The character of Mia was really hard to empathise with, you want her to feel like the protagonist, but she feels more like the antagonist .. I'm not sure if that's what the Director wanted, but maybe it is.  Katie Jarvis was the weakest link, she was good in many scenes, she felt so wooden in a lot of them.
 

Final Thought

 It's a gritty British drama that doesn't go to extremes like Green Street, This is England or any others in that category. The acting is really solid, Fassbender taking the lead and proving how talented he really is. I liked the 'twist' that Mia isn't actually a good dancer  .. it was refreshing, so many times we've seen movies of people using dance to escape their lives and finding that they are all unrealistically talented. I'd definitely recommend this film, Fish Tank is perfect for Michael Fassbender lovers and fans of British cinema in general. Now, I leave you with a BEAUTIFUL image from the film ...