Emotional turmoil, loss, fear, and regret. Harry Bradshaw is alive (just about), but the true feeling of living is merely a distant memory. Harry’s strongest sense of feeling alive is attached to a woman who now only exists in his mind. As the dark clouds roll in with greater intensity, the slivers of light become almost impossible to find.
Written and directed by Lewis William Robinson, Orchid Moon follows the aftermath of Clementine’s (Nicole Evans) suicide from the point of view of her partner, Harry (Jake Waring). While not diving into too far into the specific turmoil that lead to Clementine’s death, Orchid Moon instead focuses on the result of loss. The grief, guilt and paranoia that creeps into every aspect of life. For Harry, these feelings are overwhelming. He’s sinking under the weight. He drinks his sorrows away at a local bar ‘til the landlord throws him out. Despite feeling incredibly isolated, there are people that care. The landlord, Geoff (Grahame Edwards), only has Harry’s best intentions at heart and wants him to stop drinking. A friendly neighbour, Mrs Chandra (Ruchika Jain) also refuses to give up on him. She manages to stop him taking off in the middle of the night, checking up on him to make sure he eats. These are the kinds of human connections that can become so pivotal in times of crisis.
But there’s somehow a shadier side to this darkness: An unsavoury character that goes by the name of Eddie Costello (Frazer Hines) links both Harry and Clementine to a criminal underworld. Whatever it was that Harry was involved in is mostly only shown through fragmented flashbacks. The film also uses dream sequences throughout, however these are integrated in a way that leaves viewers unsure what is reality and what is fiction. This non-linear narrative style reflects Harry’s mental state. Just as we struggle to keep up with the twists and turns, Harry is also losing himself in the folds of his own brain. I found the dream sequences particularly creative and engaging, in which number of masked men are after Harry. There’s an instance where Harry thinks someone has broken into his house and this sequence contains a particularly creative transition between two segments of a dream. Lewis William Robinson captures the weird way our brains fragment things together to create dreams that are woven from our deepest fears.
Despite the overwhelming darkness, both thematically and visually in the choice to shoot in black and white, there are small moments of light. Human connection, spontaneity, perhaps even as far as joy. Life continues, for good or for bad.
The creative styling of the Orchid Moon is one of the highlights. The cinematography from Matt Kerins is engaging and imaginative, leaning into the noir aspects of the film to create evocative, rich visuals. This is complemented directly by piano compositions of Tom Althorpe. His melodies both haunt and caress the narrative at different stages, providing comfort or unease as necessary. At the centre of the film, Jake Waring carries the role of Harry with confidence. As the emotional core, he is heart-breaking but ultimately hopeful as the film concludes looking towards the future rather than the past.
Watch the trailer below!