THE YOUNG POISONER'S HANDBOOK
A film review by Michael John Legeros
Copyright 1996 Michael John Legeros
(C/FP)
Directed by Benjamin Ross
Written by Jeff Rawle and Benjamin Ross
Cast Hugh O'Conor, Anthony Sher, Ruth Sheen, Roger Lloyd
Pack, Charlotte Coleman
MPAA Rating none
Running Time 99 minutes
Reviewed at The Colony, Raleigh, NC (30JUN96)
==
I may have laughed twice in this supposed black comedy about a suburban London lad who conducted chemistry experiments on his friends and family in the late '60's. Based on one of Britain's most notorious true crime stories, Graham Young (Hugh O'Conor, who played the young Christy Brown in MY LEFT FOOT) fatally poisoned his step-mum. He was sent to a mental institution, where he was supposedly rehabilitated, until the young sociopath was caught, again, this time "preparing the tea" for his co-workers at an optical lab. As directed (and co-written) by first-timer Benjamin Ross, THE YOUNG POISONER'S HANDBOOK is a meticulous study in detail. We watch, patiently, as Mr. Young varies the dosage of thallium, a "heavy metal" more toxic than anything Black Sabbath was creating at the time. He carefully charts the progress of his various subjects, noting when they begin exhibiting such symptoms as vomiting or hair loss. The whole story is rendered in a very cold and calculated fashion that, I suppose, might be amusing to prospective science students.
Grade: C
--
Mike Legeros - Raleigh, NC
legeros@nando.net (h) - legeros@unx.sas.com (w)
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