After living life on the edge in London, Rona attempts to come to terms with her troubled past. She returns to the wild beauty of Scotland's Orkney Islands (where she grew up) hoping to heal. Adapted from Amy Liptrot's bestselling memoir.
"Saoirse Ronan astounds as a young woman searching for grace in the face of addiction. Not yet 30 and already with four Oscar nominations to her name, Saoirse Ronan may yet be up for a fifth for this towering turn as Rona, a chaotic alcoholic attempting to recentre herself back home on wind-blasted Orkney.
The Outrun is adapted by Scottish journalist Amy Liptrot from her own searingly honest memoir, with German director Nora Fingscheidt as co-writer. Fingscheidt handles her true-life traumas with great care, but without sparing us any of the harsh realities of recovery.
It’s formally bold, too, breaking up the stepping stones towards sobriety with narrated interludes in which Ronan – affecting a decent Scottish accent – waxes lyrical on topics from the island’s myths of shapeshifting selkies to the fate of the endangered corncrake bird. The latter is something of a talismanic presence here, alongside gently bobbing seals. Lit up in a glow of stormy sea spray, Orkney is majestic. As is the mighty Ronan."
Time Out
★★★★