Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Wow! Such a good movie.

Did you people see the same film I saw?

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

.......................................................from Pasto,Colombia...Via: L.A. CA., CALI, COLOMBIA and ORLANDO, FL BOY A also gets RIGHT up in your face…literally. This engrossing film treats you to a wide array of emotions and forces you come to grips with some very serious and highly complex issues…. How should society handle a murder when its perpetrators are only 11 or 12 years old? One of my most cherished and appreciated qualities in any film is just how intensely issues and images from the film continue to ricochet around in your brain… and how prolonged that process ends up being! Primarily based on this key factor, BOY A gets a resounding 10 Stars! What is hardest for me to comprehend, in relation to this film is, that despite having dominated the BAFTA awards not all that many years back and showing an impressive 7.7 IMDb rating, it seems a sure bet that it has found a relatively limited U.S. audience! Soembody explain that to me…"like I were a six-year-old!" This is hard to watch without tearing up at some moments. Yet, I am convinced that Director John Crowley never strived to that end, it is just that the subject matter is such that it provides quite a number of emotional gut punches! Owing to Andrew Garfield's recent turn as SPIDERMAN, hearing his name probably would not illicit a knee-jerk, "Wow! What a great dramatic actor!" But here, in a role relatively near the beginning of his On screen career, his portrayal of a 24 year old who is re-released into society after being institutionalized For half of his life is deliciously nuanced and astoundingly impacting! It's really hard to find anything NOT to like with this British masterpiece! 10*....ENJOY!/DISFRUTELA! Any comments, questions or observations, in English o en Español, are most [email protected]

I'm not entirely sure why some have said this film has stayed with them in a depressing way. Perhaps it is easier for some to have cut and dried, black and white views about certain things. Life of course never fits into those type of parameters; which have been paved by a non-thinking 'justice' system and continued by a pack mentality.This film challenges generalisations; keeps you on the edge of your seat with no clue of what will unfold next. It stays away from clichés and works only on allowing us into the depths of this main character's psyche. It is a rare treat to watch a film which neither lies to us, nor makes judgments. We simply see a snapshot of a young man's life, interlaced with his history. There are plenty of disturbing scenes and I did cry a lot watching this film. Mostly the bits which show such severe neglect of the young boys. Unfortunately this kind of neglect IS a reality in our society and that's one of the reasons this film is important. There are very very few human beings who randomly decide to be violent (psychopaths - humans who are unable to experience empathy, being probably the only example of such). Almost ALL violent behaviour stems from abuse and is a learned/copied response.The only antidote is love. I have seen a webpost which may or may not be accurate but it states that there is a tribe in Africa who respond to negative behaviour with love only. This is the only response which could work. Forgiveness IS the only way and I feel this film really conveys that message. It leads us to have compassion for a man who was severely abused as a child and who may or may not have contributed to the murder of another child. We're never actually told if he did hurt the girl but the point isn't whether or not he did the point is that we can see that he never would NOW, that it's not in his nature to inflict pain. Like his social worker says; this young man deserves happiness and anybody watching the film will be compelled to agree.There is no shame in feeling love for a vulnerable, abused human being. We should never be concerned to feel compassion or care for another. An abused dog which bites will be forgiven by most and a human should be given the same chance. A wonderful film. Oh and exemplary acting throughout from all. I particularly loved the social worker and his story also. He was a beautiful, rich character. Bravo to the film makers for championing the underdog and taking on such a sensitive and controversial subject. {from a thinker who loathes the media for the needless negativity it propagates}

The movie was just fantastic. The film maker finally created the movie about something nobody ever even tried to mention, the social rehabilitation of a murderer. It definitely got me thinking about the ethic of this situation, which is whether I should feel sympathy for Jack or not. and I still can't reach the answer. The problem I got is I would probably take the same action as Terry, Jack's boss, and Kelly if I were them. For example, if I knew Jack is really changed and ready to back to the society, I would try my best to protect Jack like Terry. and if I'm his boss and happened to know that Jack murdered a little girl in his past, I would fire him and ask him not to come to the work place never again in order to protect the rest of the workers and company's reputation.I'm just confused whether we should accept the "ex"-murderer to the society or not.First, I was like "Doesn't the law forbid disclosing the identities of minors involved in crimes? and they have the rights to have a ordinary life after they come out of jail. Isn't the media which tried to reveal his identity as a "ex"-murderer the one to blame?But more I think about the situation I came to the idea that I can't 100% believe the idea that they truly changed and will never hurt somebody again. Moreover, while a ex-con has a right to live peacefully, we also have right to live safely and eliminate those possible dangers around us.The only answer I got for this situation is there is no correct answer or perfect ethic, and that's why I want a lot of people to watch this film.

A horrible crime was committed. The young perpetrators paid their price in jail. One of them is about to be released and he'll try to start a new life. Everybody needs a second chance. But does everyone agree on that? Punishment was already made or it must be equal to the one he committed in the past? In the amazing "Boy A" Andrew Garfield plays the title role, his name while during his trial for killing a child, along with a friend. Now he's out of prison, with a different name, Jack, and he's going to rebuilt his life along with his protective rehabilitation worker Terry (Peter Mullan) who'll help him find a job and everything he needs. Simple as that? No. Jack is still haunted by the ghosts of the past, often reminding of how he end up doing what he did and also thinking his future might be ruined if people discover the truth. His work colleagues and his girlfriend know he did something to be imprisoned but they don't know what. Things would be the same if he reveals the truth to them, now that he's settled, quite happy and things aren't so tough anymore? But destiny has its odd surprises...Carefully constructed over an quiet, dramatic and tense atmosphere "Boy A" moves to so many directions without being confusing or problematic. It moves back and forth with Jack's new life and his life as a kid, giving us through the whole film an incredible sense of doubt if he really did committed a murder or not. The story greatly presents themes of redemption, love, friendship, humanism, it's all good but I had the sense that somehow, if you look carefully and closer to the elements given here in this story, you'll find some issues that can and will bother some viewers (although I think almost anyone haven't noticed such issues). Here they come: Sure, it's totally laudable to tell a story about someone who made a mistake, now needs a second chance, we can care about those things, we feel sorry for the young man. I know this was adapted from a book so they had to follow it's base but here's where my point of view tries to reach: Would we care for this film if Jack was portrayed by a more average type of actor, not so cute like Garfield or of a different race? Maybe, maybe not but it certainly would have less importance than this film has and "Boy A" is a great achievement because Andrew Garfield does an extremely convincingly job in the main role, and that was used by the director as a way to manipulate their audiences in the sense you must forgive the criminal, you can't condemn him to more punishments than the ones he already got. And you do feel lots of sympathy towards Jack/Garfield that's why I think the challenge made the film worth it (to an incredible number of viewers just look at the positive reviews here on the site) but this same cause might not work to some people, specially close-minded ones. Please don't get me wrong because I'm giving these remarks and a 10 star rating for this film; it's not contradictory. I'm just like what Terry is to Jack, he knows the young guy is imperfect, knows what he did but he cares for him in high esteem, no matter what. Same thing here between me and this film! Now launched as the new Spiderman and the memorable Eduardo Saverin of "The Social Network", Garfield must be highly noted for his performance here. If you haven't seen it run for it! He plays an difficult role portraying many different emotions into just one character, a man with a heavy burden to carry trying to unload part of it with his new life even though he's forever attached to his past. He really amazes us by showing what a guilty conscience is, it's that kind of feeling of never letting things go even when you know it's far behind you. Supporting him in great style is Peter Mullan, who plays an interesting figure in Jack's life, a man more proud of this boy even with all the things he done rather than feeling some admiration for his own teenage son, of whom he isn't so close after some problems in the family.At last but not least I loved this film for the small things that made the whole difference in the story, the minimal and almost unnoticed thing it occurs here: the importance of a good family structure. Lifes were shattered and never were the same if people would only pay attention to that little boy, who turned out to ruin another family lives and the story goes and on and on. Dramatically effective, quite realistic (inspired in the events of James Bulger case) and very well made this film is a must see for those who like involving stories and are not afraid of feeling sad or depressed through the whole journey. It certainly will reward you. 10/10