The Young Poisoner's Handbook

source: The Young Poisoner's Handbook

The Young Poisoner's Handbook

The poisoner in question is Graham Young, played in early years by Tobias Arnold and then later by Hugh O' Conor, a true life psychopathic in 1960s England. A combination of "A Clockwork Orange" and "Fargo," this brilliant dark and vicious comedy-drama may well be the best unknown film I've ever seen. Graham became infamous after killing his step mom by spiking her food with thallium and after arrest is treated in a mental hospital. After his "cure" and release, the criminal genius reverts to his true nature and resumes his previous path of bad deeds. Along with Ted Bundy, Graham Young is one of the most interesting criminal subjects brought to the screen.

I usually like black comedies, but what exactly is so funny about scenes showing people writhing in agony, retching and vomiting? Even though there were some clever quips in the narration, I'd classify this more as a sick comedy. And since it was based on actual events it put even more of a damper on my enjoyment of it. The best that can be said of it is that there was some fine acting, with Hugh O'Conor perfect in the title role, and it was well-made.

If you are able to cast aside the moral implications of creating a comedy( albeit a pitch black one) out of relatively recent real life tragic events than you'll find one of the 90's(and British cinema's) most underrated offerings. The Young Poisoner's Handbook tells the 'true' story of a very sick and twisted young man(brilliantly played by Hugh O'Connor) in appropriately sick and twisted fashion. If the Coen Brothers where British you could imagine them producing something along these lines. Indeed Benjamin Ross's debut feature is so accomplished and idiosyncratic you find yourself wondering why he hasn't a long list of features under his belt. Oh well, he has this one and it's great. Seek it out!

'The Young Poisoner's Handbook' is one of the freshest, most daring and original movies to come out of Britain in years. Hugh O'Conor is perfect as the oddball "young poisoner", and the supporting cast are all splendid too. I'm not sure just how accurate the events portrayed here are, but it doesn't matter anyway. As a movie this is a compelling black comedy that will be appreciated by anyone who is looker for something that isn't your usual bland and simplistic fare. I shudder to think how this plot and characters would have been handled in a mainstream Hollywood movie! I can just see Leo or Toby in the lead role, an "explanation" for his psychotic behaviour, and an uplifting, heart warming happy ending. Thankfully Benjamin Ross has a more unique vision, and he has given us a movie that will stay with you for years to come. 'The Young Poisoner's Handbook' is fantastic!

Troubled teen is sent to a nuthouse for rehabilitation of his addiction to concocting toxic substances. I got a couple of laughs from this film, but it wasn't exactly a comedy - if it was, then clearly it was the blackest comedy I've ever seen. Be ready to see lots of vomit and a really vomitous lounge singer named Dickie Boone. Very good picture about an extremely deluded boy.

This delightfully evil confection should warm the cockles of any mad scientist's heart. Our 14 year old hero dispenses antimony with precision glee and soon graduates to thalium before getting caught. But that's just the beginning really. A preternaturally good perfomance in the lead role, superior period decor of the hideous early sixties, a score to bless Purcell's heart, a cool and steady directorial hand and a wicked sympathy for the young man in question work to maximal effect. This may be the first quality film I've seen that genuinely crosses the line of sympathy for the evildoer; toss in lots of vomit and the best gotcha jump scene ever carried off, and there's lots to shy away from--for the faint of heart. Oliver Sacks sometimes writes about the joys and freedoms for the mind of a young chemistry set owner in the old days before restriction but I don't think he had this in mind. And my girlfriend wonders why I shy away from potluck dinners.

This is a movie that I *wanted* to like. I just watched it for the second time and my reaction remained the same: indifferent. So we have this loose portrayal of Graham Young, a cold young man with a passion for poison. He poisons some family members, takes notes like a good scientist, prison, more poison, end. I liked the look of the film, and the acting was adequate. But it just drags. It's not dark enough to be disturbing (In a Glass Cage),and there's not enough humor to be a good black comedy (such as 1995's To Die For). Mechanical dialogue. None of the characters felt fleshed out enough to support a 90 minute viewing experience; the shallow characterizations would be fine for, say, appearances in a brief flashback scene. But full length films usually require some characters that aren't so 2 dimensional. A few nice moments, but I was disappointed.

I truly love this film. The look on young Graham's face when he got his first chemistry set was probably like the one on my own when I got mine. Because I loved my family, I chose other areas of research and never experimented on them. That said, I found the humor in this black comedy right on target and I actually felt sorry for the young poisoner. If he had worked for Q branch he most likely would have received a knighthood rather than a prison sentence. I have no idea how close to the truth this movie is but it is on my top 20 films of all time.