Film Review

By Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat

That Sinking Feeling
Directed by Bill Forsyth
Samuel Goldwyn 1980 DVD/VHS Feature Film
PG

This delightful film, released before Gregory's Girl and Local Hero, reveals director Bill Forsyth's consistency in making the most out of modest narratives about authentic characters in everyday situations. Set in Glasgow, this story focuses on several down-and-out teenage boys who can't find work and barely can get enough to eat. Ronnie (Robert Buchanan), the most philosophical of the group, exclaims, "There's got to be something more to life than committing suicide."

He comes up with a scheme to rob a local plumber's warehouse of 90 stainless steel sinks. Most of the film revolve around the group's efforts to set up and carry off the heist. Humor abounds as Ronnie makes a fetish out of secrecy and Vic (John Hughes) goes to outrageous extremes to prepare an outfit for his masquerade as a woman to divert the guard's attention. On the day of the heist, amateur chemist Bobbie (Derek Miller) gives his co-worker a sleeping potion that would be the envy of scientists studying cryogenics.

Unloading the stolen sinks is not as easy as the gang envisioned. Wal (Billy Greenlees) comes up with a whimsical solution, thanks to the timely appearance of a modern art lover. That Sinking Feeling is a breezy escape with just the right dash of whimsy.

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by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat