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  1. Entertainment
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Broken review

A young girl's life changes after she witnesses a violent assault

Reviews
By Neil Smith published 25 February 2013

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The Britain in this BIFA-winning debut feature from theatre helmer Rufus Norris may not be broken, but it sure is fractured.

And the same applies to the chronology used to tell this tale of class warfare in a suburban cul-de-sac, viewed through the eyes of one spirited 11-year-old (appealing newbie Eloise Laurence), which comes to involve her father (Tim Roth), brother (Bill Milner), teacher (Cillian Murphy) and admirer (Robert Emms).

The result believably charts a girl’s coming of age but is eventually capsized by lurid melodrama even Brookside would have found excessive.

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  • Jessie Buckley as Ida/Penny in The Bride The Bride's violence was "pulled back" after test screenings, but director Maggie Gyllenhaal stands by what was kept in
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Neil Smith
Neil Smith
Freelance Writer

Neil Smith is a freelance film critic and writer who contributes regularly to Heat, SFX and Screen International. He's a long-time member of the London Film Critics’ Circle and was a contributing editor at Total Film for many years.

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