I was not sure that I was going to like this film about John Lennon’s early life, but in fact it was surprisingly enjoyable. It followed John Lennon from his last year or so at school to just before he went off to Hamburg.
Nowhere Boy
John lived with his Aunt Mimi since he was small, but it took him until the end of school to discover that his mother lived only a short walk away. The film followed the intense relationship that John rebuilt with his mother, and how his Aunt reacted. John, excluded from school, learned banjo from his mother, decided to form a skiffle group, met Paul McArtney and the rest is, as they say, history.
What made this film special was newcomer Aaron Johnson’s absolutely haunting performance as the young Lennon. He handled the excitements and disappointments and anguish which life threw at him in spades. But Kristin Scott Thomas who played his aunt Mimi, and Anne Marie Duff playing Julia, Lennon’s mother also gave great performances.
The screenplay came from a memoir by John’s sister, Julia, so this rollercoaster of a story must be pretty authentic. Great soundtrack too. I learnt a lot from this film which went a long way to explaining what came afterwards. Recommended.
