“A powerful and moving film with a willful approach to its subject matter”

Compassion is a quality that we all genuinely believe we possess to some extent, but very rarely are able to practice in our daily lives in a way that makes much of a difference. Perhaps a slightly cynical view, since we do find people who work laboriously to provide support to members of their community who need it the most. It can sometimes become a tricky situation when we put ourselves in a position where the boundary between being generous and intending to be viewed as a savior of the less fortunate is quite narrow and hard to define. This conversation is the starting point for Urchin, in which Harris Dickinson makes his directorial debut by exploring the trials and tribulations of the unhoused population in contemporary London. The film follows the experiences of a young recovering addict named Michael over roughly a year, particularly the circumstances surrounding his release from prison after being charged with assault and robbery, and examines his attempts at redeeming himself and atoning for his past actions. A harrowing but deeply compelling account of a contemporary crisis and the people who have become victims of a cruel system, Urchin captures something quite special and presents it in a unique form, abounding with empathy and creativity.

The most appropriate way to describe Urchin would be as a film that evokes the feeling of quietly sitting on a bench on a busy urban street, silently observing the hustle and bustle of the people passing through, and momentarily factoring into their daily lives. This is often referred to by the term ‘sonder’, which is the psychological theory related to the realization that every person we encounter, even for just a fleeting moment, has their own vivid, complex life that exists far beyond the brief moment in which our paths cross. Thematically, this film is a fascinating examination of people who exist on the outskirts of society, with Dickinson making use of some intriguing ideas to craft a narrative based around the class system and the people who have become victims of structures that are supposedly put in place to maintain social cohesion, when in reality it is the opposite that is more prominent. The film is steeped in some harsh, challenging subjects, with Michael’s story being defined by drug addiction, homelessness and violence. All of these experiences have compounded, and are constantly pushing him further outside the margins of decent society, turning him into a pariah. It demonstrates the challenges that come when one attempts to escape such a situation, which proves to be entirely futile after a certain point. This leads many to decide between forcibly elevating their lives or simply resigning to their fate, the conceptual core of this film.

Understanding the message that Dickinson aimed to convey takes some time and relies on our willingness to engage with the material and view Urchin as a character study about someone who represents both the victims and perpetrators of an oppressive system. It is, first and foremost, a character-based piece that revolves around plumbing the depths of the human condition, and Dickinson resists the temptation to cast himself in the lead role (which often happens when actors step behind the camera for the first time), instead deferring the responsibility over to Frank Dillane and taking on a smaller but still fascinating supporting role. While he has been working steadily for over two decades and has established himself as a very gifted actor, it’s difficult to anticipate the sheer might of Dillane’s extraordinary performance. He commits wholeheartedly to the premise and delivers such a layered, nuanced portrait of this young man who is simply seeking a second chance, and consistently failing to meet the expectations that are set both by those in charge of overseeing his rehabilitation and by himself in his own personal goals. The extent to which he is willing to explore the depths of this character is staggering and is perhaps one of the year’s most astonishing performances in terms of its underlying complexities and how Dillane and Dickinson collaborate to infuse this character – and the entire film by extension – with so much humanity and depth. He represents an entire population of people fighting to survive, and the simplicity of the film only highlights the strength of his delicate, nuanced portrayal that is far more touching than we may expect.

A powerful and moving film with a willful approach to its subject matter and an active attention to detail (particularly in how it works with genre), Urchin is a well-crafted social drama, and a truly ambitious debut from one of our most exciting young artists who continues to establish himself as a fascinating voice on both sides of the camera. The key to this film’s success is in its willingness to have the difficult conversations without becoming condescending or positioning itself as an authority on any of its subject matter. It is a quiet and compelling character study that defines itself primarily as an examination of themes such as addiction, poverty and the challenges that come when attempting to navigate the social system, especially when confronted with harsh realities that many would prefer to remain hidden. Dickinson certainly makes a case for himself as a genuinely talented filmmaker, and his work is surprisingly cohesive and self-assured for a debut, avoiding the usual pitfalls that come with novice efforts and instead focusing on the simple but evocative qualities that truly bolster the underlying themes. At its core, Urchin is a film about a young man searching for a home, both physical and metaphorical, and while it doesn’t provide us with the neat, definitive conclusion we may expect, it remains a poignant and impactful exploration of contemporary issues, rendered beautifully by an exciting, empathetic new voice in modern cinema.