Glasgow Film Festival 2017, Pawno review by Pat Byrne

The action in Pawno is based around a pawn shop, where the owner Les Underwood, played by John Brumpton, helps people out and sorts them out in equal measure. His assistant Danny, Damian Hill, who also wrote the script, is younger and softer with a romantic, dreamy disposition that contrasts with his boss’s abrasiveness.
The film is driven by the twelve characters we meet, who are diverse and far from one dimensional. The multi-layered story provides a snapshot of how their lives intertwine as they work, hang out and pass each other by in a street in multicultural, down at heel, Foolscray, Melbourne. The audience are presented with a very raw and different take on life in Australia.
It has a lot going for it and the director, Paul Ireland, has managed to extract great performances from each of the large cast. There is also plenty of room for the audience and we wonder at the unlikely relationship between Les and with the attractive owner of the Chinese Takeaway. We are also left guessing as to the past experiences that trouble Danny and it’s not until the end of the film that we see a completely different side to his life. I enjoyed the soundtrack – a mix of the familiar, including Tom Waits, and original music.
I managed to catch John Brumpton and Paul Ireland both before the film at the Film Festival Centre, at breakfast, and then later on, in the foyer at GFT, after the film. They were delighted to meet up with friends and fans, including the Scottish Actor Cal MacAninch. They were also surprised to see such a good turn out for the early Sunday morning viewing. But Glasgow cinema-goers know a good thing when it comes along and Pawno is a particularly endearing film.
A brilliant debut feature film from Toothless Picture.
Cast
John Brumpton
Maeve Dermody
Malcolm Kennard
Mark Coles Smith
Damian Hill
Tony Rickards
Kerry Armstrong
Naomi Rukavina
Daniel Frederiksen
Ngoc Phan
Brad McMurray
John Orcsik
Mark Silveira
Jesse Velik
Pat Byrne, February, 2017
This section: Cinema, Events, Fairs, Festivals and Fundraisers, Glasgow Film Festival 2017, What's On Glasgow West End: cinema, clubs, theatre, music, events, festivals, community and more
Related Pages
- Book Launch: The Good Father – Liam McIlvanney
- Take 2: The Adventures of Prince Achmed
- Lost in Translation at GFT
- Videodrome at GFT
- Love and Trouble at GFT
- High Fidelity and Almost Famous at GFT
- Hidden Master – The Legacy of George Platt Lynes at GFT
- The Other Way Around at GFT
- Linda Jaxson Band at the Wyllieum
- Irish Roots Programme – Govanhill International Festival
- Govanhill International Festival 2025
- Clutha Bar Festival Weekend 2025
- Book Launch:’She Wakes Me Up” – Willy Maley
- Marginalia – The Stand Comedy Club
- When We Were Young – Touring Theatre at Cottiers
- Madison Violet at Cottiers
- Lens on Legacy – Spotlight on Glasgow’s At-Risk Buildings
- Bard in the Botanics 2025
- Gregor Smith Exhibition, Glasgow Print Studio
- GFT Programme for July 2025
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.