EIFF: Blackbird, Review

An interview with the cast of Blackbird, presented by EIFFtv
Rating: ***

The Edinburgh International Film Festival showcases the world premier of Blackbird, starring Andrew Rothney, Scarlett Mack, Patrick Wallace and directed by Edinburgh film-maker Jamie Chambers.

The film is set in a Scottish town where the traditional culture, based around folk singing, is gradually dying out and young people are moving to the cities in search of better opportunities.

Ruadhan (Andrew Rothney) plays a strange, amiable and vulnerable man, with a passion and obsession for songs, which he picks up from elderly people living in the community. He lives in a small, wooden fishing boat and collects everything he can get his hands on – shells, antiques, musical instruments – which he stores in his mini-den.

The second half of the film drew me in with it’s gripping and satisfying plot, to which it concluded to a delightful, but predicted ending.

Andrew Rothney gives an inspiring performance in the lead role and I’d love to see more of his character, possibly in a TV series of the film?

Blackbird has been named ‘Best of the Fest’ alongside the likes of Breathe In, The Bling Ring and Desert Runners.

Last chance Screening Dates:
Sunday 30th June: 12:55 at Cineworld