Rye Lane
A new voice in British cinema brings an invigorating freshness to South London’s Peckham.
Street talk: Vivian Oparah and David Jonsson
Rye Lane is in Peckham, South London, and Raine Allen-Miller’s vibrant, shockingly original debut feature is a revelation. A love letter to the up-and-coming district, the film heralds the most dynamic voice in British cinema since the arrival of Danny Boyle. Essentially a kinetic two-hander – featuring the newcomers David Jonsson and Vivian Oparah – it recalls the ground-level freshness of early Spike Lee. It shouldn’t matter, but both Jonsson and Oparah are black Londoners and Allen-Miller cites Steve McQueen as a major influence (although she’s obviously raided the whole cinematic candy store). Yet her vision is all her own, from her choice of fisheye lens, to the tone, the colour palette, the costumes, the energy and the language. It has been said that the sign of a great director is the credibility of the background artists, and Allen-Miller has provided a host of colourful film extras that illuminates her canvas.
It all begins with a pan across the top of a stable of cubicles in a gender-fluid public convenience. This is Trainspotting at its most original, as each stall reveals a different world: a vomiting session, some wild partying, a selfie opportunity, a baby having its nappy changed, and even a man relieving himself (while on his mobile). And then there’s Dom, who’s trying to have a private moment. But his crying is overheard by Yas (Oparah), who asks if he is alright. Later, she spots his pink trainers at an art exhibit and they strike up a conversation that leads to a day of banter and confessions and to a conversation-led adventure in the tradition of Before Sunrise. Both actors make for engaging company, their repartee inspired by their surroundings and the people they meet.
The dialogue is nothing if not quotable, chasing the gamut from street cred to the pretentious (“we know more about the planet Neptune than we do the human anus…”). But it never feels scripted, just off-the-cuff and relevant as Dom and Yas are drawn into their respective worlds. Meanwhile, Peckham exerts its own charm, as if on the joke, the camera pirouetting across the hustle and bustle of a community exploding with life. Art is a flourishing medium in the district, as is music, theatre and film, and Allen-Miller takes immense pleasure in spotlighting its extremes, from a bangin’ karaoke session (set to Salt-N-Pepa’s ‘Shoop’) to an art exhibit of enormous photographs of naked derrières. Redolent with visual non sequiturs, Rye Lane might just be the film that liberates British cinema.
JAMES CAMERON-WILSON
Cast: David Jonsson, Vivian Oparah, Munya Chawawa, Simon Manyonda, Karene Peter, Benjamin Sarpong-Broni, Poppy Allen-Quarmby, Malcolm Atobrah, Levi Roots, Alice Hewkin, Marva Alexander, Llewella Gideon, Gary Beadle, Delroy Brown, Yasmin Al-Khudhairi, Colin Firth.
Dir Raine Allen-Miller, Pro Yvonne Isimeme Ibazebo and Damian Jones, Screenplay Nathan Bryon and Tom Melia, Ph Olan Collardy, Pro Des Anna Rhodes, Ed Victoria Boydell, Music Kwes, Costumes Cynthia Lawrence-John.
DJ Films/Turnover Films/BBC Film/BFI Film-Searchlight Pictures.
82 mins. UK. 2022. UK Rel: 17 March 2023. US Rel: 31 March 2023 (on Hulu). Cert. 15.
