A Moving Image

2016

1h 14m

Drama

List

83%

12 Reviews

Tomatometer

40%

Fewer than 50 Ratings

Audience Score

Nina, a young stifled artist, returns to her community after a long absence and is soon painted as a symbol of gentrification. As she struggles with her own complicity, she begins to create a piece of art that can bring her community together.

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Audience Member

This is one of, if not the best modern-day movies I have seen. Relevant and evoking emotion for a key issue, the actors and storyline completely satisfy. Specifically I was drawn to Big Ben one of the supporting yet crucial characters. Yinka Oyewole, founder and vocalist/guitarist of the rock band Sabatta, plays this part and brings a depth that propels you to want more. Multi-talented, the producers delivered with this choice. I thoroughly enjoyed it and was completely engrossed throughout. An art movie that magnetically entertains and educates at the same time is my type of film.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/26/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Marvellous film !!!!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Let's first get this out of the way, a young black writer and director, making a 'docu-drama- about gentrification, in London, in 2017...I mean, it ticks all the boxes, right? It would be almost impossible not to be moved by this film. And yet...A Moving Image left me with that cringey feeling of watching an experimental student film written by a person completely unable to understand human emotions. The film relies on its lead actress Tanya Fear, but never really makes you care about her. The filmmaker, knowing he was onto a winner with the whole gentrification thing, seemed to have decided halfway through filming that she needed to have some feelings and relationships so cooked up a couple of love interests and a squabble with her best friend that could only have been written by someone who doesn't know women that well. So, if we ignore the drama and focus on the 'docu,' what do we have? A half-finished look at gentrification in Brixton. It could be argued that apart from the real-life guy with the loudspeaker, everyone, like the Ethiopian woman in the tea room, has kind of gentrified already in their own way. There's an obvious lack of Caribbean influence and ownership in the film, which arguably was there before the filmmaker even arrived in the area himself. When you add the embarrassing dance moments, you leave the cinema feeling that, yes, you've ticked the boxes and watched an "important film" for 2017, but was it any good? Ehh. And did you enjoy it? Nah.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

01/18/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A really solid feature debut

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/23/23

Full Review

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Shola Amoo

Director

Tanya Fear

Nina

Hussina Raja

Isha

Aki Omoshaybi

Ayo

Yrsa Daley-Ward

Dionne

Yinka Oyewole

Big Ben

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Wendy Ide

Observer (UK)

Although the film's approach to issues is a little on the nose at times, in Amoo, we are introduced to a distinctive and bold new voice in British cinema.

Rated: 3/5

Apr 30, 2017

Full Review

Kevin Maher

Times (UK)

This impassioned docudrama makes the unfortunate mistake of confusing artistic ambition with intellectual incoherence.

Rated: 2/5

Apr 27, 2017

Full Review

Danny Leigh

Financial Times

Fittingly, the film is itself a grand collage, drama spliced with documentary, music and dance.

Rated: 4/5

Apr 27, 2017

Full Review

Matthew Anderson

CineVue

The simple title, loaded with meaning, should not disguise just how much is packed into this profound and articulate debut feature from a very promising London-based filmmaker.

Rated: 4/5

Dec 29, 2017

Full Review

Jamie East

The Sun (UK)

Writer and director Shola Amoo is almost certainly headed for great things.

Apr 27, 2017

Full Review

David Parkinson

Radio Times

Amoo boldly attempts to explore the social, economic and political aspects of gentrification with this freewheeling docudrama.

Rated: 3/5

Apr 27, 2017

Full Review

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Synopsis

Nina, a young stifled artist, returns to her community after a long absence and is soon painted as a symbol of gentrification. As she struggles with her own complicity, she begins to create a piece of art that can bring her community together.

Director: Shola Amoo
Producer: Shola Amoo, Laressa King
Screenwriter: Shola Amoo
Production Co: A Moving Image Productions
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English (United Kingdom)
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 5, 2018
Runtime: 1h 14m

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