Gentle and sweet-natured, this British road movie may lack high highs and low lows, but it rolls along with a charming cast and some third act twists before easing down for a smooth landing.
Over the opening credits we see John (Patrick McNamee) at the funeral for his father. His Mum and Step-Dad are kindly and understanding. And John, who doesn’t give a crap about Mods, inherits his dad’s scooter – it’s got all those rear view mirrors like on the Quadrophenia album cover. It’s pretty bad ass.
John and his Dad were meant to go to the Paul Weller concert in Brighton – a far distance from home in Manchester. With his Dad’s ashes in an urn, John decides he’s going to travel on that scooter to spread pop’s remains in the sea at Brighton.
His parents are absolutely not having it.
Enter Nicki (Sacha Parkinson), a rebellious girl who happens to love Paul Weller’s music and nudges the somewhat introverted John into an unlikely pilgrimage to that coastal city of Mods. After a stop at the home of a couple who were friends with the departed Dad (they’re there to ask for some money for the road), they take the couple’s son, Logan, with them.
Three for the road and they’ll meet some colorful characters on their way south. Again, nothing super memorable in that department but whatever. Things get more interesting in Brighton where the chemistry among the trio starts to crackle.
No spoilers from me, but it’s here that John will learn some things he never knew about his father, and he’ll learn that a lot of the key adults in his life have kept the secrets from him.
Writer/director Chris Green has heavily borrowed a shopworn template for the narrative, but he has cast the right actors and has created the right tone. This movie plays just fine in your living room on the average weeknight and leaves you feeling warm, if not knocked out.
The Pebble and the Boy On Digital/On Demand starting November 16th | 3 out of 4 Stars
