Plot Summary
London Fields revolves around Nicola Six (Amber Heard), a stunning yet mystifying witch who sees her own murder. From the very beginning, Nicola understands that she will be murdered on her 30th birthday, and even more troubling, she knows that the killer will be someone she loves. Instead of escaping from this vision, Nicola weaves herself into a perilous web of seduction and intrigue where she is determined to uncover which one of her lovers will betray her.
The story’s narrator is Samson Young (Billy Bob Thornton), an unsuccessful American novelist who is terminally ill and spending his days in London. While in quarantine, he becomes obsessed with the woman and, suffering from severe writer’s block and desperately searching for motivation, starts accompanying her with a tape recorder whenever she goes out. He perceives her as his last great work — an authentic femme fatale who is fully immersed in her own noir fantasy — and takes on the role of a detached observer, chronicler, and, to a certain extent, puppet master of her life.
Nicola’s two primary love interests include Guy Clinch (Theo James) a banker with a considerable fortune, and Keith Talent (Jim Sturgess), a vulgar self-important criminal darts player. Nicola balances both affairs whilst skillfully guiding each one towards confrontation, understanding that one of them is bound to murder her in the end. Each man embodies a different archetype: Guy represents the tortured soul with a longing to connect, and Keith is an aggression-fueled caricature of impulsive greed and ego.
As the narrative progresses, reality becomes increasingly indistinct from fiction. Either way, the manipulation is systematic and inescapably tragic. The film poses these questions alongside the self-imposed ordeal of Samson’s compulsive documentation, and character-driven disjointed narratives involving a waking nightmare that is Nicola. Flips of consciousness only add to the growing discomfort and disarray.
Performers and Cast
Amber Heard as Nicola Six
Because of Heard’s ethereal and cold portrayal, Nicola is a complex character, and her anchor to the film. A strikingly beautiful woman doomed to die too young is emotionally indifferent, TOO desperate to be adorable, and intelligent, quintessentially a femme fatale. This burden makes her somewhat tragic. While the film’s editing and tone is inconsistent, Heard’s layers are undermined, making it difficult for audiences to understand and appreciate her attempts to grasp Nicola’s complex character. Heard captures Nicola’s gaze, but her performance is sharply cut due to the film’s inconsistent tone and fragmented editing.
Billy Bob Thornton as Samson Young
Weakened and deeply cynical sums up Thornton’s performance of the character that is a dying and desperate writer. Thornton gives a subdued performance considering how the rest of the film is much more theatrical. His character, ancient and utterly defeated, succumbs to the slow merciless mover we call time; with fading failure and time, troubled as throughout life, Thornton grounds the film with sorrowful brilliance. Through Nicola, he imagines one final shot at greatness. Heard captures Nicola’s turmoil with subtle and restrained emotion. And while all the pieces of the character contradicted each other, Thornton’s performance binds them into a melancholy sigh.
Jim Sturgess as Keith Talent
He Sturgess portrays as Keith, a character that suffers from both dangerous charm and dominant chaotic energy. Pathetic, yet able to drag people unto delusions of illusions, a failed darts champion. All in all, a pose of delusions turned mania and a blend of threat, Keith is the grandson of Sturgess that not only undertakes the role but performs it. Although exaggerated, his take on Keith is rather memorable, energizing the film to some extent, shoving Sturgess in the balance of portrayals bordering caricature alongside the rest of the cast.
Theo James as Guy Clinch
James takes a more muted approach with the character’s suffering Guy upper-class romanticinal. Guy is suffocated and caught up in a constant inner conflict between right and wrong and want, all of which James captures wonderfully, if ignorer subtlety. Even so, he is often underdeveloped due to Nicola’s over-the-top impact dominating him.
Themes and Style
London Fields deals with the issues of fate, death, the act of creation, and the commodification of beauty. The entire plot hinges on the question of free will—does Nicola have the capability of changing her destiny, or is she simply following a script? Predestination is not only examined through Nicola’s clairvoyance, but Samson’s attempts to craft her narrative. The film poses profound questions around authorship, control, and challenging the idea of reality.
Stylistically, the film draws heavily from noir and neo-noir traditions. It includes voice-over narration, low-key lighting, and amoral anti-heroes. A uniquely vivid quality is created from the film’s color palette which frequently alternates between rich and drained tones, enhancing the dreamy, sometimes surreal feeling of the movie. The dynamic construction of imagery uses cinematography with reflections and shadows to capture the shattered world the characters live in.
The film often fails to achieve complete closure through its postmodern attempts of a self-referencing plot, as well as blending storytelling chronology and a fractured opening with closing sequence, creating the illusion of sophistication due to its lack of effort. The editing is at times far too brash and fails to capture control of pacing, which compromises the flow of the film’s rhythm and emotional resonance.
Controversy and Issues Related to Production
London Fields was suffocated by a fair share of controversies prior to its release date. Mathew Cullen, the directing producer, entered into a legal tussle with the producers of the film for denying the version that premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival released in 2015. Cullen claimed that the final edit was nothing that resembled his vision and was unceremoniously altered without prior consent. Altering the final cut behind the scenes had led to several years of delays before settling the disputes.
On the other hand, Amber Heard attracted legal attention from several producers of the film for what had been reported as unmet obligations under contract and appearing without permission due to nudity clauses. The publicity attracted to the film, in combination with these legal feuds, furthered the negative outlook that the film seemed set on pursuing.
There were overwhelming expectations set for the 2018 release of London Fields, expectations that were met by receiving pummelled with harsh reviews. The audiences harshly criticized the film’s convoluted storyline, an unmatched underlying flow, and overall absence of logical progression as some its key attributes overlooked. The film continues to dominate critic-less featured films for the decade and carries no further praise outside of infamy.
Conclusion
Like a jigsaw puzzle with missing pieces, London Fields revels in its self-created beauty, possessing visual allure and philosophical depth, yet ultimately succumbs to self-destructive tendencies in its execution. It tries to accomplish a lot, and in the process reveals itself to be simultaneously entertaining and brainless.
Muddled execution, incoherent performances, chaotic production history and a lack of polish make the premise more infamous than impactful due to being a surreal trainwreck rather than brilliant. Despite excelling at showcasing conflict-laden themes of yearning for purpose and taking control of one’s life, it then presents that to the audience in the form of ambiguous delivery and fuzzy reasoning.
Audiences interested in postmodern noir, experimental literary adaptations, or works aiming high will still find value in the London Fields, and while it may not succeed in being coherent grand rhetoric, it challenges the viewer’s thought.
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