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Fish Tank

Fish Tank

2009
Drama
2h 3m
The life of hot-tempered teen outcast Mia (Katie Jarvis) takes an unexpected turn when her mother (Kierston Wareing) brings home a handsome and mysterious boyfriend named Connor (Michael Fassbender), who pledges to bring sweeping positive changes to the household.
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Fish Tank

2009
Drama
2h 3m
Your probable score
Avg Percentile 63.82% from 1786 total ratings

Ratings & Reviews

(1786)
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Rated 23 Nov 2009
8
78th
A raw, genuine and potent portrait about youth confusion. The film is not without its flaws (especially the resolution to Fassbender's character), but Jarvis is a find as the rebellious Mia and Fassbender is once again wonderful and continues his awesome streak of starring in some really great films. One of 2009's better entries.
Rated 12 Oct 2009
9
94th
Highly impressive. Structurally cyclical: Same people, same places, yet with - through the meticulous unravelling of scenes, the background story often only hinted at - new issues, new problems. Slowburning, but hardhitting. Some great shots (especially those blurred close-ups with a limited depth of field) and awesome acting. Katie Jarvis is one to watch. And so is Andrea Arnold for that matter.
Rated 14 Sep 2012
61
17th
A smoking hot teen spends most of her time misbehaving and doing otherwise delinquent nothings and then decides to bang her mom's boyfriend and then pee on a floor. Did I miss anything? Oh yeah, Michael Fassbender is in this.
Rated 24 May 2013
62
42nd
I did not understand the main character, says middle aged man that hates to dance and has never peed on a carpet before. Fassbender has been a villian in three movies I've seen. In one he mentally pushed a bullet through Kevin Bacon's head, in another he punched an mma fighter (a female at that) in the back of the head, and in this he bangs a fifteen year old. The lesson as always: It's good to be Fassbender.
Rated 30 Mar 2011
80
86th
Containing most random dog-name ever.
Rated 15 Mar 2011
84
81st
I'm not sure this really brings anything new to the kitchen sink style of filmmaking, but it's pretty damn good. Mia is an intriguing character, due largely in part to Katie Jarvis' strong performance. I also thought Kierston Wareing was very good. What I appreciated most about this film was that it could show you a lot of truly awful things, but never wallows in miserabilism. Throughout is a note of hope, minor joys that touch the characters without sacrificing realism. Love the soundtrack.
Rated 18 Aug 2009
84
91st
From the moment a 15-year-old girl headbutted someone in the face, I knew this was going to be great! Gripping from start to finish, thanks to Katie Jarvis's bottled up teenage energy and Andrea Arnold's nervous handheld camerawork. Every gram of happiness feels fleeting, and by the end we just want the justice of something good to happen to the character. But no! We have to question that too, thanks to her uncondoneable behaviour. It's a little bit electric...
Rated 31 Oct 2010
90
92nd
No reality-show in the world could ever show reality this way. Solid in every aspect, and for once a modern realism that melts together with suspension and a nice climax. It never drifts or loses edge, on the contrary it magically keeps you awake from start till finish. Also, great cinematography; so nice that this unsteady hand-held over-the-shoulder cam is here proven capable of producing stunning, colorful pictures.
Rated 06 Apr 2010
63
61st
Who was clamoring for a lower-class, vérité-style version of An Education? Definitely grittier, and the relationship between the teen girl and her older suitor is handled with a lot more subtlety and ambivalence.
Rated 23 Jul 2013
99
97th
Hypnotic character study/kitchen sink drama harks back to Loach but can stand on its own, thanks to searing performances (especially from Fassbender and Jarvis' remarkable debut) and exquisite directorial tricks by Arnold, which effectively create an unseemly world for its leading characters to navigate. What distinguishes the film and makes it intriguing is the hard edged realism combined with complete ambiguity of everyone's motives and backgrounds - fertile ground for further discussion.
Rated 20 Apr 2013
85
75th
Mia is a caged animal moreso than an oblivious fish, but both are trapped in the confines of their realities. Mia doesn't trust. Maybe it's growing up with a mother who's even less mature than her. Maybe it's because when she does let her guard down, it proves to end poorly. It's raw and unbalanced, like Mia. It's bleak but with a sliver of sunlight. I think it's wrong to call her unsympathetic. Think of the unseen cause behind her behaviour. That's where the empathy is found.
Rated 13 Jul 2010
60
71st
Starts off as your typical indie chavs-on-council-estate fare but develops into a simmering perfectly-paced will they/won't they between teen Mia and her mother's new boyfriend. It's a shame then that the relationship peaks too soon, a couple of questionable twists enter the plot and the story loses it's focus considerably in the final third. Fassbender plays his part well once again, but it's newcomer Jarvis who's really captivating. Sadly this is likely to be the best we'll ever see from her.
Rated 18 Jul 2011
40
14th
Thirteen + An Education + Step Up = Fish Tank. May be the worst film in the Criterion Collection. Fassbender is the only redeeming aspect of this run-of-the-mill teen girl gone wild story. Why all the hype? There is nothing here.
Rated 01 May 2014
80
61st
Not really sure what kept me at a distance, but I think it's the way the film mixes bits of social commentary with a personal story but doesn't actually integrate the two very well and takes a long time to get under the skin of either. Jarvis plays her role well in the lead, but Fassbender is the key that makes the film click, he gives the other characters life and depth. Eventually it does coalesce into a very good portrait of personal lower class growing pains, might like it more on rewatch.
Rated 22 Jul 2012
50
15th
Bleak and pointless. Fassbender is great, but this is just British Depressionporn.
Rated 27 Dec 2010
90
96th
Watch out world, here comes Katie Jarvis! An incredible performance by the teen who portrays the foul mouthed Mia with great charisma. You never get the background for this little family living in a somewhat ghetto-ish neighbourhood, but the film gives you hints every once in a while. Not a huge fan of the overall structure, but some of the scenes are breathtaking and leaves you both with horror and joy while Mia tries to get away from her life, but like a fish, she keeps bumping into the glass!
Rated 28 Sep 2014
3
30th
tries to fit into the kitchen sink genre of british film, which i'm a big fan of, but is too tidy in its execution. so it has all the yelling and swearing, but without full dedication too that peculiar realist aesthetic of the genre, it lacks emotional heft. but it's ok.
Rated 01 Sep 2010
6
53rd
Nailed the confused everyday lifestyle the characters (All expertly acted with Jarvis/Fassbender being the strongest) went through. Unfortunate that it is flawed with a messy final third, the storyboard seemed to be a tad jumbled. Liked it, just wish a few things were changed.
Rated 22 Dec 2010
80
74th
It's pretty predictable (keep in mind I'm a pretty vacant person here) save for a couple of choice parts, but it's surprisingly good. A person I talked to said this looked like Step Up: White Trash, and I'd say that's wayyyy off the mark. There's a lot more than just bad dancing here, and the performances are almost all great (the camerwork is as well).
Rated 01 Nov 2010
90
96th
The Dardenne like cinematography at first is distracting, but the film never loses edge and ends being a journey of lifetime. Incredibly shot, well written - genre wise, better than Leigh and Loach. But first and foremost, an unbelievably well told fable, in one of the most recognizable milieus depicted on film, which should be, but never is, unbearable.
Rated 12 Feb 2010
50
33rd
UK kitchen-sink drama populated exclusively by obnoxious characters. We're all supposed to think that movies like this are automatically righteous by virtue of being smaller, but this is not _The Bicycle Thief_, and it sure as hell isn't Sven Nykvist. Was the scene where the heroine *snicker* urinates on the carpet really necessary? What, exactly, *is* a person supposed to like about this movie?
Rated 03 May 2010
88
96th
Impressive.
Rated 21 Apr 2010
85
89th
Emotionally stirring and surprisingly riveting. I have to commend Kate Jarvis for her phenomenal performance. To think, the girl didn't have any previous acting experience. That's just wow.
Rated 12 Mar 2010
85
84th
No, you don't get a morally-sound and predictable teenager. Kate Jarvis puts in one of the finest and most important roles of the year; depicting a 15-year-old who's been the victim of parental negligence to bitter perfection. Fish Tank is an honest study of a character thats been taken over by a negatively influenced persona. Andrea Arnolds film is anything but orthodox, and sadly it will be overlooked and wrongfully misunderstood by a one-track mind. A gem.
Rated 31 May 2010
15
23rd
Yeah I'd have sex with her but I wouldn't watch her fake the orgasm. Women can't, shouldn't, really ought not, to direct.
Rated 26 Sep 2021
60
62nd
I was starting to find this a bit long, but the final act with Fassbender's home and his daughter elevated an otherwise so-so London tenements slice of life. That said, maybe I've watched too many similar films, but the moment he rushed her away from the home I knew what was going to be revealed. I would have liked more demonstration of Jarvis' dancing talent. The mom, played by Kierston Wareing, was an eye-catcher. Fav scene: they really did it. They had Jarvis push a child into water.
Rated 26 Oct 2010
82
70th
When it's not trying to be too 'gritty', this film is something special
Rated 17 Apr 2015
76
63rd
Really predictable, falls flat in the second half.
Rated 10 Jul 2010
88
58th
strong movie. I even cried watching it. The rough characters are great and the way it moves is good, but i felt a bit lost when it came to the main character, for i didn't really feel close tho her and wasn't very worried when they where hitting her for example. But all in all the movie was goo, i'm glad i saw it.
Rated 06 Sep 2013
70
76th
Surprisingly fresh and true to life portrayal of a teenager's misguided attempts to find the affection that's missing from her life. Katie Jarvis is perfect in the leading role.
Rated 03 Jan 2011
58
17th
A young girl with ambitous dreams learns the hard way
Rated 03 Jul 2012
95
95th
An unforgettable experience. A hauntingly realistic and unflinching coming-of-age heartbreaker.
Rated 10 Mar 2010
83
81st
A brutal portayal of a hard teenager's life that received no love in life; the movie is a brilliant depiction of the cruel and boring everyday life of a teenager with no point in life and only one love, music. Although some things are hardly realistic, you are left with sour taste in your mouth wondering what will the girl have of life and how much hope as well as destruction can a normal guy bring to such a family. Not to mention the impressive acting of a girl with no former acting experience.
Rated 12 Aug 2012
8
54th
A very frank and honest film; Mia is incredibly sympathetic as a protagonist. Does an excellent job portraying domestic strife and the struggles inherit to being a teenager. Overall it felt like a very "real" portrayal of working class life.
Rated 05 May 2013
100
95th
Bana böyle filmlerle gel Andrea film icn tek söz yeterli mükemmel.
Rated 01 Apr 2012
80
47th
Good performances, disturbing, sometimes aimless story.
Rated 26 Oct 2012
8
84th
Kitchen sink realism for the 21st century.
Rated 15 Nov 2011
76
73rd
Between this and last year's An Education, I'm starting to sense a pattern... still, very well-made, building slowly to a climax that skirts just this way of melodrama, and if you're into social porn you could do a lot worse.
Rated 11 Jun 2010
100
87th
"Life's a bitch and then you die."
Rated 03 Nov 2014
85
82nd
Really immersing movie. Complex characters and superb acting from new actress Katie Jarvis. Edit: Just gave this movie a rewatch and it's totally worth it. I didn't remember how fucked up the story is, I'm still wondering how the guardian could find "tenderness and hope" in this, but one thing it made me look forward to is a long overdue return of Jarvis to the screen.
Rated 15 Jul 2011
87
56th
favorite line (comic): say hello to the whales for me! favorite line (poignant): she was sixteen.....it was her time. aka: an education ( no slight intended towards lone sherfig's film ) overall impression: an interesting and gritty coming of age story. has a noteworthy soundtrack with two highlights being...james brown's get up offa that thing and bobby womack's cover of california dreamin.
Rated 03 Feb 2013
82
80th
Katie Jarvis makes a great debut by playing the intriguing Mia but Fassbender is the MVP, as usual. The film peaks when Katie and Fassy are together. Their chemistry is amazing. Great cinematography as well.
Rated 03 Jun 2013
73
15th
More like Fish WANK, yeah? (get it?).
Rated 03 May 2010
58
54th
Bunch of obnoxious, well acted characters that I could not care about. Story is predictable and drags in the last third of the film. However, I loved the way it was shot. At first, I was doubtful about now-unusual academic aspect ratio, but photography is great, and captures the essence of the film. The last dancing scene is so cheesy that it nearly killed everything the film accomplished up to the point (think Slumdog Millionaire). So yea, I rather take sugarcoated An Education.
Rated 27 Dec 2010
84
93rd
I cared about this angry kid, and this makes for a very tense watch, as we wait for something terrible to happen to her. It's also very moving when she gets some kindness from her mum's new boyfriend. Leanly, beautifully shot, with a perfect evocative diagetic soundtrack. There's hope for British film yet.
Rated 18 Sep 2012
90
84th
Whoa. Good god. Holy shit. Seriously.
Rated 30 May 2016
80
55th
(...)Tatsächlich meinten einige Kunden am Videotresen unserer Filmkunstbar Fitzcarraldo, Connor sei pedophil. Ich denke da anders, vor allem, weil es in Fish Tank auch nicht um Sex geht, sondern die Abwärtsspirale, in der sich das Mädchen befindet. Arnold zeigt das Geschehen durch Mias Sichtweise und spart alles andere aus.(...)
Rated 24 Aug 2016
80
70th
Well directed, beautyfully shot, but most of all great casting. Katie Jarvis steals the show and Michael Fassbender is, well, Michael Fassbender. The main story is mainly to be found in the details and is a one of lust, class and figuring out how be grown up mostly on on your own.
Rated 21 Dec 2016
68
70th
For some reason this reminded me as much of the Dardennes and Breillat as of the British "kitchen sink" variety of social realism. Perhaps it's the tracking shots through empty spaces and the symbolistic subtext - like the equation of the protagonist to a horse she attempts to unchain. More refined than Red Road, I thought, but not yet as good as American Honey (which builds on some of Fish Tank's themes).
Rated 05 Apr 2011
82
83rd
An incredible film... we were talking about it for days afterwards
Rated 26 Apr 2012
91
91st
Katie Jarvis should be the next big thing coming out of Britain, then? Wow.
Rated 03 Dec 2012
80
77th
Energetic, poignant and compelling. Jarvis transmits teenage frustration and need masterfully.
Rated 30 Mar 2010
83
71st
Superb performance by Jarvis and some really great moments make this one of the better indie movies.
Rated 25 Feb 2011
62
75th
A far more compelling version of AN EDUCATION.
Rated 01 Sep 2012
65
19th
loved the first half.. .then petered out towards the end... loved the actress. strong.
Rated 22 May 2011
79
76th
British realism meets teenage angst and frustration in this gritty (but pretty) film. Fantastic performances all around, especially by Katie Jarvis, who succeeds in making a belligerent, angry, and troubled 15 year old appear genuine and likable. The audition scene towards the end is a great highlight.
Rated 31 Aug 2011
71
69th
4:3
Rated 05 Feb 2015
60
35th
It's not bad... but it's not entirely satisfying either.
Rated 08 Nov 2010
30
78th
"The British director's filmmaking style is precise and concise, as tight and lean as her teenage heroine." - Lauren Wissot
Rated 11 Jul 2015
70
71st
About the intergenerational cycle of detriment and destitution, in which the world of those inhabiting it is limited without them knowing it. Excellent title.
Rated 15 Mar 2012
90
71st
It's easy to dismiss this as a collection of vapid small domestic dramas, but I think that would ingore the merits of the film as a whole. It's much more than just a coming-of-age story, it's more than just a modern take on Les quatre cents coups; it's something that either resonates with you or it doesn't. It's much deeper than many seem to think though, but this is the sort of subtlety that's to be admired.
Rated 31 Oct 2011
80
59th
Harsh drama about teen age confusion. Delivered through engaging plot and shabby settings, with fantastic performance from Fassbender and Jarvis, Fish Tank could have been great, but lost it trues essence somewhere at the end.
Rated 14 Oct 2009
88
97th
A not so Sweet Sixteen pushing against her boundaries - until they break. Handsomely, intimately made. Bring some empathy.
Rated 30 Jan 2010
4
51st
Yor wots wong wit me!!!!
Rated 24 Dec 2010
1
0th
This knee-jerk pathos is a reflex from both America's Reagan-era hip-hop and England's Thatcher-era miserabilist pop. Call it Automatic Pity.
Rated 23 Mar 2014
83
75th
82.500
Rated 31 Dec 2010
70
65th
Kitchen sink realism almost on par with Loach's. Unfortunately, the movie loses its way in the last third. Jarvis' performance is a bit overrated, I feel. Fassbender is one to watch, though.
Rated 02 Jan 2013
83
72nd
A good movie despite the completely unsympathetic protagonist. But I think that was the point. In fact, every character in this film is repugnant to some degree, even the kids. The dreary, rundown setting doesn't help cheer things up. We all have hopes and dreams, but we can't all live in squeaky clean American suburbia.
Rated 31 May 2012
93
83rd
Well deserved praise has been heaped upon Katie Jarvis for her role in this movie but the little girl who plays Tyler is fantastic as well. Excellent direction and writing from Andrea Arnold.
Rated 17 Aug 2012
65
73rd
Very good.
Rated 17 Dec 2010
7
73rd
Grim and very depressing - it had a feel of The Dardenne Brother's Rosetta. A real insight into the unloved youth.
Rated 01 Nov 2022
87
84th
A Perfect Movie. Literally could not imagine changing a single frame of this one. wowow
Rated 21 Feb 2011
81
68th
a very powerful, hyper-realist movie about the f**ed up life of 15 years old teenager who wanna dance... unfortunately the last part is a bit sloppy...
Rated 30 Nov 2012
80
80th
Fish Tank manages to be about exploitation without being exploitative. For my money--and without opening up the "Precious" debate again--it's by far the better movie.
Rated 17 Apr 2010
89
65th
My god. So shocking. So sad. Yet so true.
Rated 31 Mar 2011
83
83rd
Surprisingly less moody and lyrical than Red Road, with a more resolutely gritty social realist sensibility (although with a few poetic flourishes here and there). The story feels awfully familiar (did someone say Somersault?), and you can see where it's going from a mile away, but really i have to admit that Arnold handles this material pretty brilliantly.
Rated 20 Nov 2013
84
72nd
Even better than expecting, very absorbing.
Rated 20 Jan 2011
80
84th
Really good. Very aesthetically pleasing, and the story is told well. Definitely looking forward to watching Red Road now, and will follow Andrea Arnold's future projects. And oh, gotta show some love for the main character's potty-mouthed little sister, gave some much needed comic relief.
Rated 15 Jun 2011
80
85th
An unflinching, often harrowing glimpse at the life of a confused, self-destructive teenager of lower-class Britain, "Fish Tank" is elevated thanks to terrific performances from Jarvis, Fassbender and the rest of the cast. It's painfully realistic and that's its greatest advantage -a true coming-of-age story with no shiny illusions or any sort of redemption. Arnold's hand-held camera immerses us in an aquarium -the experience is bleak and suffocating, but also deeply involving.
Rated 29 Aug 2015
60
40th
Oi!
Rated 10 Apr 2010
80
95th
Think of it as a comedy.
Rated 31 May 2012
60
22nd
Everyone in this film is a cunt. Nice lighting. She peed on his fucking rug, man!
Rated 01 Feb 2014
85
78th
Fish Tank had the potential to be another cliche, broken family drama; however, the performances, especially by Jarvis and Fassbender, set this one apart from the rest. I don't think the story itself was anything to write home about, but the dialogue was honest and true.
Rated 02 Jan 2010
90
89th
Unique movie in many ways. Feels like real life.
Rated 06 Aug 2012
80
90th
There are so many awful characters in this film, it was kind of hard to watch sometimes. I thought the lead actress was really great. She portrayed this teenage girl trying so desperately to be an adult, but often still looking like a child. I despised so many of the things her character said & did, but I still found myself feeling sorry for her. Michael Fassbender was also really good. The horse allegory was probably a little obvious, but I still liked it. It was a really good film overall.
Rated 05 Jan 2014
75
66th
Life's a bitch and then you die
Rated 11 Aug 2014
99
96th
Whether sharing her point of view or watching her omnisciently, it portrays social isolation and youthful volatility so well, you will think it was actually written by the 15-year-old East London chav girl it follows. It all makes sense on that very most personal, internal level.
Rated 23 Feb 2011
50
61st
Looked good. Story felt a little contrived at times, a few characters seemed a little one dimensional (the mom... oh wait I forgot that dancing scene came and swooped in at the very last second and fleshed her out completely, nvm) ...But jeez laweez did the film look good on criterion BR. Ain't no Mike Leigh at the end of the day.
Rated 05 Jan 2012
90
62nd
Very realistic portrayal with an underlying sensilibity. Great performance by Katie Jarvis.
Rated 30 Apr 2012
84
77th
84.000
Rated 29 Nov 2010
85
96th
Never been so moved in so many ways, mostly uncomfortable ones, by a film in a very, very long time.
Rated 29 Oct 2011
94
97th
Incredible film. It's use of lighting in so many scenes was amazing. Fassbender and Jarvis are amazing in this.
Rated 06 Sep 2013
80
90th
Very fluid and naturalistic. Using the life of a 15-year-old girl Andrea Arnold explores apathy and ultimately, social mobility.
Rated 28 Nov 2016
9
71st
What makes this movie great is more than just GREAT cinematography, acting, editing. It's STORY. From the first moment, we KNOW WHO MIA IS AND WHAT SHE'S ABOUT. The film NEVER WAVERS FOR A SECOND from her path and her perspective. Like a teenager, it can wander (like with the boyfriend side plot), but we're always enthralled. As of 2016, this remains Arnold's brightest achievement. And of course that white horse - perhaps also the best single image in her oeuvre thus far.
Rated 01 Apr 2012
85
82nd
Magnificent acting from Jarvis in this incredibly realistic story of troubled youth. The conclusion of Fassbender's story didn't do much for me, but the rest of the story was solid and managed to be gritty without being overly dark and hopeless. My one issue is that hand-cam makes me feel sick and I had to pause the movie for a while a few times before I could continue.
Rated 21 Feb 2019
65
42nd
I think I was in the wrong mood when I saw this, because it really didn't click at the time. Rewatch eventually
Rated 12 Feb 2020
70
51st
Moderately interesting, well-acted character study. But I really didn't need to see another 45 year old man-teenage girl illicit "romance".
Rated 10 Mar 2020
41
21st
Seen: 2.
Rated 30 Jan 2023
80
78th
Super real, deeply heartfelt & complex. Funny at times and generally unsettling. Kind of cliffhangery ending, but it felt like as good as any place to cut off this slice of life thing, not just some lazy arthouse gimmick that’s so popular these days.
Rated 01 Jul 2021
100
96th
Andrea Arnold has a real talent for telling stories about people with very few real prospects that never stoop sob-story melodrama. Aided immensely by a fierce, committed performance from non-pro Jarvis, she tells a story that threatens to go to extreme highs and lows, but ends up in a realistic middle ... the stuff of life's small victories.

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