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Ratcatcher
Ratcatcher
8.3
/10
5,785 Ratings

RATCATCHER

Directed by Lynne Ramsay
United Kingdom, France, 1999
Drama

Synopsis

12-year-old James Gillespie lives on a Glasgow housing estate during the 1973 refuse collectors’ strike. After James’ friend falls into a canal and drowns, James becomes increasingly withdrawn. As bags of rubbish pile up and rats move in, James starts to spend time with Kenny and Margaret Anne.

Synopsis

12-year-old James Gillespie lives on a Glasgow housing estate during the 1973 refuse collectors’ strike. After James’ friend falls into a canal and drowns, James becomes increasingly withdrawn. As bags of rubbish pile up and rats move in, James starts to spend time with Kenny and Margaret Anne.

Our take

Lynne Ramsay’s magnificent, impressionistic debut tells a haunting coming-of-age story tuned to her distinct frequency of poetic social realism. Set against a gloomy backdrop of 1970s Glasgow, we see the world through the eyes of a child: beautiful, painful and shot through with devastating humor.