“今から皆さんは……僕の人質です。”
鳴り響く爆発音。騒然とする生徒たち。『教師=生徒』の関係は一言で『犯人=人質』へ変貌を遂げる。この瞬間から教師と29人の人質生徒による、『最後の授業』が始まった―――。最後の授業……、それは数ヶ月前に自ら命を落とした『ある一人の生徒の死の真相』について。遺書もなく、何かを告げることもなく、突然この世を去ったかつての学園のスター生徒。29人の生徒は一人の教師に人質に取られ、自ら蓋をし、目を背けていたその『真実』と向き合うことに。なぜ、生徒は突然命を落としてしまったのか。なぜ、教師は「人質」というセンセーショナルな方法を取って最後の授業を行うのか……。謎と事件が連鎖的に絡み合う、一人の教師の『最後の授業』！たった10日間という日々を描き、死ぬ気で生きる人々を紡ぐ超限定的連続ドラマ！誰も想像していない衝撃的学園ミステリーがここに開幕！―――この真相を知るまで、誰も卒業なんかできない。
AIが作品の魅力を深く読み解いています
Junkhearts - Tortured Souls - Bad Seeds. Junkhearts is directed by Tinge Krishnan and written by Simon Frank. It stars Eddie Marsan, Candese Reid, Tom Sturridge and Romola Garai. Story has Marsan as Frank, an alcoholic ex-soldier suffering nightmares over an incident that saw him shoot a young mother. Frank strikes up an unlikely friendship with Lynette (Reid), a homeless girl sleeping rough on the streets. Once barriers are broken down, Frank takes Lynette into his home to stay, but it's not long before Lynette's drug dealing boyfriend comes a calling... For the most part Junkhearts is a very gritty slice of British miserablism. The pic is populated by addicts and wannabe gangsters, in a part of London built of dingy concrete council abodes, and where single promiscuous moms struggle to keep a grip on their lives. Director Krishnan suffered herself from PTSD, so she was on hand to ensure the great Marsan could do the role justice, while there's a refreshing street believability about young Reid's performance. The camera work is intense and deliberately intruding, with the sound work being hypnotic to add bleaker tones to the characterisations. The harshness and hurts of addiction rings true here, as does the key betrayal plot line and the breakdown of Frank. Unfortunately the parallel plot line featuring Romola Garai undermines the grit and grime surrounding Frank and Lynette's world, and it sadly serves only to give the pic a somewhat disappointing ending. Whilst the introduction of gun and knife crime appraisals don't strike the requisite powerful chords. Yet even with its flaws this is still an intense film, with Marsan on top form and some other technical smarts on show, it's well worth a look by anyone interested in a slice of some moody British underbelly. 7/10
