Themes: Doctors and Patients, Kids in Trouble, Starting Over
Main Cast: Cillian Murphy
Release Year: 2001
Country: UK
Run Time: 86 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
A teenager finds himself reaching out to others as he tries to heal his emotional wounds in this drama. Jonathan (Cillian Murphy) is a young man who is having a difficult time coming to terms with the recent death of his father; after falling into a deep depression, he attempts to commit suicide by driving a car off an embankment. Jonathan survives the accident and is sent to a mental institution for treatment. While in the hospital, Jonathan becomes friendly with a disturbed youngster named Toby (Jonathan Jackson), and falls in love with Rachel (Tricia Vessey), another patient at the facility. Also featuring Stephen Rea, On the Edge was the third feature from Irish director John Carney and the first to be backed by a major American studio. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Review
The well-worn story of the misfit teen who winds up institutionalized gets a new coat of paint from co-writer/director John Carney. Cillian Murphy, better known for his roles in 28 Days Later and Girl With a Pearl Earring, is Jonathan Breech, the young man whose face, with its wide blue eyes and pouty lips, fairly screams "sensitive." His grieving over the death of his father drives him (literally) to a suicidal act and confinement. The understanding counselor (Stephen Rea), the pal (Jonathan Jackson), and the girl (Tricia Vessey) are all in their places, ready to do their parts to help our hero find his way back. Carney wrote the film's original score, and there are plenty of source tunes to underscore the emotions, but the script never digs much below the surface on any of the characters. Jonathan's troubles clearly began long before his father's death, but they're only hinted at. Likewise, Rachel (Vessey) gets her one speech about her mother's mysterious death, but she has little else to do than look waifish. The film might appeal to less sophisticated younger teens, but there's that pesky R rating, likely earned for a bit too much profanity. If Murphy's star does go into ascendancy, this will be of more than routine interest. ~ Tom Wiener, All Movie Guide
