Beats

By: Amos Lassen

"BEATS"
Coming-of-Age in Scotland
Amos Lassen

Scottish writer-director Brian Welsh's coming-of-age, comedy-musical reminds us of the rave scene of the mid-nineties in Scotland and attempts to show us something about teenage friendships. The film is based it on the 2012 play by Kieran Hurley which was then a one-man monologue. Welsh has beautifully opened it up.

In 1994, in a housing project in West Lothian, Scotland, near Edinburgh, we meet teen and mismatched working-class best mates--- Johnno, (Cristian Ortega), is middle class and a reserved lad while Spanner (Lorn Macdonald) is a wild boy from the lower class. We see them dancing in their bedrooms to rave music coming to them from pirated radio broadcasts of D-Man (Ross Mann). When they hear of a major weekend event, just down the road, they know they must be there even if it's illegal and that they must go behind the backs of their folks. In 1994, raves were banned by The Criminal Justice Bill because of pressure raised by the tabloids. This brought about youth protests and ignoring the ban.

The rave event captures the spirit of the times. Benjamin Kracun, the cinematographer, chose to shoot the film in black and white with color thrown in at times to change the mood. Politics was kept below the surface, the music rocks and the bromance is handled gently.
The gist of the film has the boys living it up over the course of the evening, irritating dealers, finding romance, getting into trouble with the law, and making a positive statement about themselves being brought together by the music. We assume when they return home, because of all sorts of pressures that they face, they will probably never see each other again (or at least if they do, it will be very different.

It was the swansong of rave and we are taken into various underworlds of pirate radio and parties in fields and learner drivers. There are some excellent performances, especially Macdonald's Spanner is excellent as a teen to whom life has been unkind, opportunities have been few, and things are never just black and white.

This is a fine, heart-warming film with its particular melancholy, accurate dialogue, and it is often funny with the two teens just wanting to enjoy a little techno and exert a tiny measure of control over their lives. Johnno is a passive little guy who would be bullied at school, were it not for, Spanner. Unfortunately, Spanner lives on the even more wrong side of the tracks with his abusive -dealing older brother, Fido. Johnno's mum Alison has always been against their friendship, so she is happy that they are moving and that the move will break the guys up for good. They will be making a bid for polite respectability when they move in with Robert, her boyfriend who is a very straight cop. Johnno has no choice but to give into the move, but he has resisted telling Spanner, because of he hates conflict. When his mother abruptly lets the cat out of the bag, Johnno reluctantly agrees to one last hurrah. Spanner has purchased tickets for a much-anticipated rave, where they can finally hear techno beats in the way they were i to be experienced. This will not just be any rave. It is also a political statement, as pirate radio DJ "D-Man" constantly explains. The recently passed Criminal Justice Public Order Act has provisions cracking down on such events. Most notoriously, it contains a provision prohibiting "gatherings of 20 or more people," centered around music dominated by the "emission of a succession of beats." Unfortunately, the raving as activism theme is over-played, making the film seem to be ridiculously self-important. Spanner and Johnno just want to drop acid and bob their heads. The film basically focuses on the bromance between the two.