re:mote voices

Title: Miranda
Cast: Christina Ricci, John Simm, Kyle MacLachlan, John Hurt
Director: Marc Munden

one could be forgiven for not being aware of miranda, given the seeming invisible status it has. the national site i use for cinema times had nothing about the film, the cinema showing it had no details about the film. miranda it seems is a small british film, though it has a reasonably known cast. john simms plays the lead frank, a librarian who is about to become out of work with the closure of his library. the film starts with the library's last week and the arrival of a strange young woman. frank is quickly besotted with her, and though he expects to be shot down pretty quickly he asks her out when given the chance.

this is how frank meets miranda, played by christina ricci, who much to surprise agrees to have a drink with him. miranda is involved in some dodgy deals, with frank suddenly presenting her with a chance for some cover. for a week or so it looks like they have a serious and happy relationship. then miranda disappears, but she leaves a clue behind and frank decides to find her. this puts him into the middle of a deal with the seemingly psychotic business man played by kyle maclachlan. it also means he is interfering with the plans of miranda's boss, played by john hurt.

in some ways it could be said that miranda was a by the numbers romantic comedy, with the token gesture of touches that could make it a thriller. which would be true, there isn't anything starkly original or surprising about miranda. but miranda has a certain warmth, something which makes it somewhat endearing as a film. the four characters work well, even if maclachlan and hurt could be considered as caricatures, ricci and simms make up for that. the director's eye for detail - the little flares of discarded cigarettes, the heightening of ricci's sexuality with lingering or teasing shots - also contributes to the film's small success.