Touches You

How sad is this?

Admirable film.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

I liked the story-line/acting/occasional visual effects to suggest the epileptic fits. Deyn is sensational as the main character. Visually striking and amazingly empathic. Low budget but goes to show a good movie doesn't need a big spend. Interesting how other reviewers with epilepsy state the way the seizures are presented is very effective. As a doctor it did give me some cause for pause in how we treat this difficult condition and hope that patients will just follow their prescription. Possibly essential viewing for all medical students.I expect the director and cast will always remember this movie fondly - well done all!

Lilly O'Connor (Agyness Deyn -'Pusher') is a 'Northern lass' who has come from a horribly troubled background. Left with the physical and mental scars of her past she is thrown back to what she had escaped when her eldest brother contacts her. This is to say that their mother has died - it is then that she discovers her long lost and cherished younger brother may still be alive. So with her medication and a newfound hope - she sets off to track him down.The above is the basic synopsis and I do not want to say any more as there is so much to this rather good independent film from director Bryn Higgins; who may be better known for his TV work especially on BBC hospital, drama 'Casualty'. The electricity of the title refers to the electric storm that Lilly experiences when she has an epileptic fit. From my experience of the condition - I have treated a few sufferers - this seems to be a very realistic depiction of the disease. The techniques used are all very effective.There are many other issues looked at here including homelessness and familial bonds, but this is essentially a drama and one of memory, loss and love - a love that transcends most abuses. It is far from being a feel good movie though and that is of necessity intentional owing to the subject matter. It is good to see original British cinema being bold enough to make a film whose subject matter is essentially ignored by the mainstream. From the novel of the same name by Ray Robinson; this is one for indie fans and those who enjoy something off the beaten track.

Wow, if ever I could have the perfect two movies to identify with, one after the other, it was the last movie I saw, Infinitely Polar Bear, and a British drama by the name of Electricity. An apt title for a film if there ever was one. The tone of the two films couldn't be more different though. One is a tale of redemption, a man trying to win his family back while struggling with bi-polar disorder in a time where it wasn't understood like it is today. This however is a much more bleak, depressing film that reminded me of Trainspotting more than once as a girl with epilepsy is forced to live under the constant dread that she will have a seizure. She is trying to find her brother, who she hasn't seen since he was taken to juvie when she was 17.The best thing about this film is that the epilepsy isn't all this movie is focusing on. It is actually used as an inventive way to create tension..... Sometimes an oncoming seizure is predictable, but this seems intended at times, as the threat of another seizure constantly looms over the Lily's journey and effectively puts you in the position she is. Dread looms constantly over her journey. When she does have a seizure, the sound numbs, the visuals distort, and on occasion she will narrate what she is thinking, which is completely opposed to her behaviour, which she now does not have control over. Seizures are more than a convulsion, they can often trigger a severe personality shake-up and sudden, out-of-character behaviour.I got chills many times during this movie, it's up there with Requiem for a Dream in how much it got to me in terms of its realism and the way it brought about a sense of familiarity of bad experiences and memories of my own. When she argues with doctors, I am hearing myself, I am hearing so many medications that I am on or have been on at some point in my life. I am hearing the same frustration in her voice. It is realistic and gritty, making for an intense watch for me, and looking from the outside, I imagine this very effectively puts the viewer in that position of what it feels like to live under that constant dread and fear of seizures.Another part of epilepsy that the film portrays, perhaps too bluntly, but unfortunately again realistic, are the reactions of many when they see a person have a seizure. Lily herself uses words like 'spaz' more than once to describe herself - she is used to it. When a person is nice to her, and doesn't mind about the seizures, it moves Lily so much that she is almost speechless. I have lost count of the amount of people who just couldn't put up with my bullshit anymore, so I could again certainly relate to this scene and felt what Lily felt, the amazing sense of gratitude simply because someone is nice, and more importantly doesn't care about the epilepsy. Again shown in the film, epilepsy is always something that I try to hide when meeting new people, but it never seems to let any relationship work. Hence the overwhelming sense of gratitude, just for a friendship.The FX department may have gone a little overboard with the hallucinations, but, when they warp the vision and distort the visuals and audio in strange ways it is extremely effective, again very real, and for me, quite chilling. I was stunned at the accuracy up to a point. They just took it a little far, but this doesn't really affect the movie negatively too much.At its core this is a movie about epilepsy, of course, but the narrative of a sister trying to find a lost brother is touching. The way this story pans out though can be hard to stomach, it isn't an easy journey for Lily as this journey of course has the constant threat of a seizure. This again reminds me of Trainspotting in is raw depiction of fractured people, for whom every day is a mental struggle. Some relief from the depression comes in the form of Lily's brother, a charismatic card player of some kind, a man who has dollar signs for eyeballs. His character arc, as well as Lily's, is interesting and very well written.Apparently the lead actress, is a model-turned-actor, Agyness Deyn. Could have fooled me! I had never heard of her but was thoroughly convinced by her depiction of a type of epilepsy that I deal with every day. The narration, the way she is too trusting, the fact that she can't believe that someone will put up with it all... These aspects couldn't have been more accurate. The frustration in her voice and narration.... I could go on, but for a performance from a model-turned-actor, in an emotionally heavy drama... she was almost flawless. She had a great cast and an extremely well-written script to work with, and she took full advantage of this and nailed it. The supporting actors playing her brothers (Christian Cooke, Paul Anderson) and a friend she meets on her journey to find her brother (Lenora Crichlow) are also great. But Deyn is in almost every scene here and does a fantastic job. The story is moving, as is her performance.This is emotional drama done right, the story becoming more interesting as we find out more about the lost brother Lily is trying to find. This simple but effective story, combined with the realistic depiction of epilepsy and the avalanche of symptoms and barriers than come along with the ride, make for a heavy and tense emotional drama, perhaps a notch down from movies like Trainspotting and Requiem For A Dream in terms of that gritty realism.www.epilepticmoondancer.net

There are not many films in Hollywood that focus on disability. So upcoming indie movie, Electricity is already something quite unique.Agyness Deyn's lead character Lily O'Connor suffers from epilepsy. Since early in her childhood it has haunted her and fellow school- children didn't let her forget and took to calling her a 'fit- tastic-spastic' – it is fair to say that it was not a nice thing to have.Showing the severity and unpredictability of epilepsy, Lily one moment could be on a pier preparing for a date - but next, on the floor suffering. Having it her entire life, she is now as used to it as you can be and explains that she is like 'Alice falling down the rabbit hole' ... 'as the electric storms start in her head and her brain takes a tour'. But on screen we see it much differently, almost a POV, jumpy electric field. Quite like Doctor Who's Time travel, or Star Trek's Warp speed. Whichever it is, it impresses and gets the point across. Edited with many close-ups, Electricity is visually artistic and director Bryn Higgins accomplishes because of it.After the childhood traumas, and now a middle-aged women, her smitten and quite self-fish mother passes away. As one of the next- of-kin, she gains her inheritance which is due to be spread between her siblings. However one of her brothers, Mickey, has been long- lost for many years. All she knows is a brief past and that he is somewhere in London.Desperate to find him, and struck with recurring epileptic episodes she strives forwards with an innocent Taken-esqe style narrative (without the killings obviously). Onwards she encounters a completely unbelievable homeless woman, and eccentric characters galore.Aesthetically challenged and solely driven by Deyn's performance, Electricity is an eye-opener to say the least.