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Ratcatcher Details

1999 Certificate 15
  • 70
  • from 3022 members

Lynne Ramsey's bleak, beautifully photographed debut unflinchingly portrays life in a Glasgow housing project during the 1973 garbageworkers strike as seen through the eyes of 12-year-old James Gillespie (William Eadie, in a soulful debut). As the film opens, James is playing with a friend near a filthy canal behind the .. Read more

Starring Tommy Flanagan, Bill Eadie, Mandy Matthews, Michelle Stewart
Director Lynne Ramsay
Genres Drama

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Ratcatcher

Lynne Ramsey's bleak, beautifully photographed debut unflinchingly portrays life in a Glasgow housing project during the 1973 garbageworkers strike as seen through the eyes of 12-year-old James Gillespie (William Eadie, in a soulful debut). As the film opens, James is playing with a friend near a filthy canal behind the projects when his friend tragically falls into the water and drowns. James chooses not to tell anyone that he saw the boy die, knowing that he will be implicated. This secret, along with his increasing lack of communication with his drunken football-loving father, causes James to become increasingly withdrawn, fantasizing about his family moving to a newly constructed apartment complex at the city limits on the edge of a beautiful, golden field of grain. As the garbage piles up and rats take up residency around the complex as if they were new tenants, James finds temporary solace in his friendships with Kenny, an odd boy who loves animals, and Margaret Anne, a teenage misfit who lets the local boys use her body as they wish.
While undeniably grim, RATCATCHER manages to combine unusually rich imagery and spare use of dialogue to create a realistic portrait of a simultaneously beautiful and cruel world. Punctuated with unexpected humor, Ramsey's film is subtle and rewarding.

Starring Tommy Flanagan, Bill Eadie, Mandy Matthews, Michelle Stewart, Leanne Mullen, Lynne Ramsay Jr., John Miller, Jackie Quinn, Rory McCann
Director Lynne Ramsay
Studio PATHE DISTRIBUTION
Run time DVD: 1 hr 36 mins
Certificate Certificate 15
Genres Drama
Language DVD: English
Released Production year: 1999

To Rent:
DVD: 01 Sep 2003

  • Critic's review of Ratcatcher

    View all critics' reviews (6)

    • "...Ramsay creates a searing portrait of a boy in a spiritual trap. Pay particular attention to Rachel Portman's spare music score that in counterpoint offsets Ramsay's imagery with a presence that does not simply massage our mood..."

    • 11801

  • Most helpful member's review of Ratcatcher

    View all members' reviews (36)

    • Rated - 2.0 stars  

      • 19
      • 9

      ratcatcher

      This artily shot and well-acted film is certainly evocative, but ultimately it's dull. Although bookended by two shocking events, there is next to no plot ... read more »

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    • 10023

  • Most recent members' reviews of Ratcatcher

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    • Rated - 4.5 stars  

      • 1
      • 0

      Well worth watching

      This film captures life on a run down council estate where people wait to be rehoused. The story is portrayed in gritty reality with believable characters

      Report this review

    • 925310
  • View all members' reviews (36)

  • News and features

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    Morvern Callar

    We Need to Talk about Tilda

    • 18 Oct 2011

    What do George Clooney, Bela Tarr, Wes Anderson and Derek Jarman have in common? You probably guessed. They have all directed Tilda Swinton (Anderson in his latest, the forthcoming Moonrise Kingdom). Katherine Matilda Swinton is a rare creature. Tall, pale skinned, with red hair and drawn, curious features: thin lips, high forehead… Todd Haynes missed a trick when he failed to cast her as Ziggy Stardust in Velvet Goldmine. It’s no easy feat, to come from the avant-garde, the art... Read more

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Rating breakdown

3,022 Member ratings
  • 100
275
  • 90
221
  • 80
649
  • 70
588
  • 60
591
  • 50
281
  • 40
169
  • 30
95
  • 20
102
  • 10
51

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    • Ratcatcher

    • Ratcatcher
      Lynne Ramsey's bleak, beautifully photographed debut unflinchingly portrays life in a Glasgow housing project during the 1973 garbageworkers strike as seen through the eyes of 12-year-old James Gillespie (William Eadie, in a soulful debut). As the film opens, James is playing with a friend near a ...

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