Young Adam

2003
UK
93 min
18

Directed by: David Mackenzie
Cast: Ewan McGregor, Tilda Swinton, Peter Mullan, Emily Mortimer

Mackenzie remains loyal to the dark, existentialist spirit of Alexander Trocchi's 1954 novel about Joe, a nihilistic drifter who seems only to find connection with the world through sleazy sexual encounters. Shot in seedy green and grey hues, the film opens on the Clyde where Joe (McGregor) is working on a barge owned by Ella (Swinton) and her husband Les (Mullan). The men are in the process of dragging a corpse of a young woman from the water, an act done with particular care by Joe, thus hinting at his complicity in her demise. A flawless and coherent adaptation of a dark and disturbing tale and a work of haunting beauty.