Every class in school has that one weird kid who looks like they're hiding a secret. Well sometimes they are.
In the mid-90s a scandal erupted in Bearsden, Scotland when it was revealed that one student, named Brandon Lee, was not who he claimed to be.
Unfortunately to tell you who he really is, thus finishing my explanation of the premise of the film, would also be a spoiler. The 'twist', if you're not familiar with the true story is revealed about an hour into the film so I'll try to avoid specifics.
The documentary is told in a unique manner, flashbacks to Brandon's school days are told through cartoons, animated in a style similar to the MTV show Daria.
Peppered throughout are interviews with Brandon's classmates in present day, talking about how could they possibly miss the fact that Brandon was actually [redacted].
Brandon himself, (if that is his real name) agreed to be interviewed for the film but did not want to appear on camera. Instead the audio of his interview is lip-synced by Alan Cumming, one of Scotland's greatest exports.
I love a documentary which is willing to take risks with how it presents its narrative. The Alan Cumming usage is distracting at first but you soon start to forget the gimmick of the film because he's that good of an actor.
The style of animation won't be for everyone. Again, it's something you do get used to but I felt like I needed constant reminders of who was supposed to be who in the modern day.
The film is directed by one of Brandon's classmates, Jono McLeod in his directorial debut. There's a difference you feel as an audience when this is someone who had something interesting to say and decided to learn to make a film rather than a filmmaker looking at an interesting subject.
The difference isn't always in the film's favour though. I think another filmmaker with a bit more of a critical eye may have been able to shave 20 or so minutes off the runtime, but I can understand that when this stuff actually happened to you, it's pretty mindblowing.
Overall it's a crazy story with minor narrative issues which will have you both amazed at the sheer audacity of Brandon as well as at the classmates ineptitude to be unable to see how blindingly obvious it is that Brandon was [redacted]. I mean come on, it's obvious from how he [redacted].
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