High Life

 

Those of you who have had the misfortune to become trapped in the mundane world of my blog will be well aware that I take notions for certain actors.  Will we ever forget the Norman Reedus phase of 2011? Yes is the answer to that question.

High Life ticks two boxes – Timothy Olyphant and Joe Anderson.  I am nothing if not financially efficient in my DVD purchases.

My knowledge of the film prior to its purchased stemmed from an IMDB trailer. 

PLOT:  In 1983 drug addict Dick (Timothy Olyphant) has just been released from prison.  Dick’s attempts to lead a normal life are interrupted when his former cellmate Bug (Stephen Eric McIntyre) tracks him down and cajoles him into robbing an ATM.  Dick recruits Donnie, (Joe Anderson) an extreme hypochondriac and Billy (Rossif Sutherland) to help execute the plan. The four junkies try to stay clean for long enough to pull off the heist.  END PLOT

The idea of four junkies successfully carrying out a bank robbery works surprisingly well as a slow paced black comedy.  There is plenty of humour although it raises more smiles than actual giggles.  It is lazy viewing at its finest.

Timothy Olyphant sports a wonderfully scruffy haircut and carries the film with ease.  Olyphant has the exasperated sigh and wide eyed stare of disbelief down to a fine art.  This is the cause of most of the bigger smiles.

Timothy Olyphant: also comes in scruffy pink.  The dude always looks good in a hat

The supporting cast of Stephen Eric McIntyre, Joe Anderson and Rossif Sutherland play their parts well.  There is obvious chemistry between the four cast members which makes the banter and bickering seem genuine and at times amusing.  The characters are all underdeveloped but the cast are so watchable it leaves you wanting to see more of them after the credits role

High Life looks cheap and dirty as do the characters – everything about the film looks as though it needs a good wash.  The film does what it can with a nominal budget but the grimy look suits the down an out junkies.

It is by no means a classic but High Life fits the bill very nicely for easy background viewing.  The short running time of 80mins also works in its favour.  High Life gets 6/10.