Pond Life is a likeable, low-budget film but suffers from a watered-down plot

THIS is a relatively charming low-budget Brit flick set in working-class Yorkshire 1994.

Using the search for ‘Moby Dick’, a fabled giant carp as it’s cornerstone, we meet a group of kids ranging from 10-25 (Yes, I’m old enough to call 25 yr old people kids thanks for asking) and their individual struggles with puberty, love, divorce, loneliness and mental illness.

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We have Pogo (Esme Creed-Miles), a girl with what I took to be autism, who limpets on to Trevor, a kind young man being pushed out of his own home due to his step-mum and step-sister moving in.

His step-sister Cassie (Daisy Edgar-Jones) is copping off with the village tough guy, who’s anger stems from a darker place hinted at later in the film.

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There’s a really good film in here somewhere, but I felt it relied to much on safe tropes about Northern England (and a truly awful accent from Angus Imrie) rather than exploring the more interesting stories from the two excellent female characters.

Some good performances let down a bit by the watered down story, which never really worked out what it wanted to say.

Pond Life 100 mins (15)

★★★☆☆