A portrait of Morrissey and his early life in 1970s Manchester before he went on to become the lead singer of seminal alternative rock band The Smiths.
Sensitive and unironic, Jack Lowden shines in ENGLAND IS MINE with his depiction of the boy who would become Moz. While unable to access to the music so important to its subject's story, the film admirably finds the heart of our star.
Someone already versed in Morrissey could sit there and check off the influences, but someone who goes in knowing nothing about the man will see only the surface, the occasional photo or song snippet.
You're left with a lovingly rendered portrait of a cipher, a protagonist who never lets you in and therefore one in whom you can't invest too much emotion.
For the millions of true believers out there - the ones who loved him in 1985 and who would prefer to live in the past rather than listen to the 2017 version of their former hero - the film provides a blissfully melancholy roll call of pleasures.
As it capably chronicles Morrissey's artistic process and the influential cultural backdrop, the film shortchanges everyone on the music. The result feels out of tune.
