Written and directed by Charlotte Regan in her first feature, Scrapper tells a story of grief, through the lens of a young girl reeling from the loss of her mother and surprised with the introduction of her father. Starring Lola Campbell and Harris Dickinson, Regan's debut is a film rendered with the same heart that has catapulted the “strained parental relationship” sub-genre as of late.
A remarkably succinct and suitably stripped back feature, Scrapper’s straightforward and relatively uncomplicated set-up serves its heartfelt, tender story well. Regan’s screenplay places its characters and their evolving relationship at the centre of everything it does, never feeling the need to complicate itself with extraneous side plots or narrative diversions that would distract from its emotional core. Wrapping up well before it hits the 90 minute mark, Scrapper may be short and sweet but it is imbued with a surprising level of detail that ensures it never feels under-baked or half-developed; instead, such a clarity enriches the kitchen-sink drama and we come to recognise and understand these characters thanks to the insight afforded by such a razor-focused script.
That same skill can be found within Regan’s smart and playful direction. Captured by Molly Manning Walker's cinematography, Scrapper's whimsical colour scheme may feel at odds with the rough-and-ready setting and the prickly social themes it contemplates, but this purposeful clash seeks to demonstrate the gap between the youth and childhood Georgie should be experiencing with trauma and forced maturity her recent loss has enforced upon her. Debut features rarely come as confidently stylised as Scrapper.
With the film remaining so dedicated to its characters, the importance of a strong cast cannot be understated. On such a note, it succeeds with flying colours. Harris Dickinson is terrific as Jason, a young man reckoning with the life and freedom he has in Ibiza with the new-found responsibilities of being a single father. Less impressive hands could paint such a character with a shallowness that could derail the entire piece, but Dickinson avoids this by exploring that internal dichotomy with a refreshing complexity: his inability to commit manifesting through fear and uncertainty, opposed to a immaturity or unwillingness. Elevated further by a natural charisma that makes him such an endlessly fascinating performer, Scrapper is another superb showcase for Dickinson as one of the strongest (and most exciting) actors of his generation.
Likewise, Lola Campbell introduces herself with a cheeky performance that cuts through any sentimentality the film could easily slip into. Georgie's entire facade is built from a need to appear strong but as her grief develops, altered by the appearance of her father, Campbell refashions it, allowing the vulnerability to crack through while never diminishing her strength. It's a remarkably sophisticated performance for such a young talent and, along with Dickinson, the pair cultivate a wonderful chemistry that bolsters Scrapper as the heartfelt double-hander it truly thrives as.
Scrapper is in an unusual predicament though, one which arises through no fault of its own: the strained parental drama has been a busy one of later, and Scrapper is required to carve out a tonal individuality of its own. It takes the approach of flippancy, with quippy one-liners that are mostly-successful in establishing characters and relationships; less successful, though, are the to-camera interviews, populated by caricatures who are otherwise unexplored outside of this perceived need for personality, which otherwise backfires. It alters the pacing - felt more greatly with such a short runtime - and prevents the film from reaching the highest level of success.
Still, Scrapper stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the best of the blossoming sub-genre, thanks to the impressive work of Charlotte Regan, who debuts with an effective, well-balanced and rich-in-feeling feature that should make the filmmaking world her oyster. Along with the superb work of leads Dickinson and Campbell, Scrapper is a grounded, funny and scrappy feature with the type of rare heart that makes British cinema one of the most exciting.