Urchin (2025)

Skin Deep - Urchin review by griggs

Something prickly and promising lurks beneath the surface of Urchin — and like its spiny namesake, it’s easier to admire from a distance than to fully embrace.

Harris Dickinson clearly knows how to frame a shot, and there are moments where the atmosphere and imagery cut deep. But the film keeps drifting into dreamlike detours that feel very first-time filmmaker: portentous, self-conscious, distracting. The real dramatic question is sitting right there in the centre. Has Mike fallen through society’s cracks, or engineered his own collapse? The film seems oddly uninterested in finding out, content to skim the surface rather than dig beneath it. That can work — but only if the foundations feel solid, and Urchin never quite gets there.

There’s a sharp director in here, no question. But sharp edges without depth just scratch. Promising, frustrating, and too content to mistake mystery for meaning.

Worthy Social Drama - Urchin review by GI

Harris Dickinson's debut as director (he also cameos in the film) shows a talent that hopefully will produce more. This social drama has its flaws but it's grounded by a strong central performance from Frank Dillane as Mike. He's a homeless young man who's been living on the streets for a few years, alcohol and drugs have been his undoing, and when a fellow homeless man (Dickinson) steals his money Mike commits a nasty violent crime and ends up in prison. On release he's taken into the system that provides a hostel room and a job and he begins to turn things around although his vulnerability remains. His agreement to take part in a restorative justice meeting with the victim of his crime seems to have the opposite affect on Mike who can't relate or feel the emotions that are expected of him and from this point his life begins a slow spiral back to the streets, drugs and alcoholism. The odd aspect of this film is some strange visions he has of an old woman, perhaps his mother, and a dark cave that may represent a place from his childhood. These are unexplained and can possibly be read in various ways including a complex past that has led to Mike's situation. As a social drama that looks at the plight of homelessness and the British system it's a committed story, well directed if a little offbeat. It's an impressive directorial debut all the same.