Summer

Shaun is a teenage boy fuelled by booze and lust who embarks on the most eventful summer of his life. As typical disadvantaged youths he, his girlfriend Katy and their best friend Daz spend their days making and dodging trouble. Cut to the present day and Shaun (Robert Carlyle) is a full-time carer to the now disabled Daz (Steve Evets), whose worsening illness forces Shaun to confront the events of his past. Rather than wallow in the despair of a turbulent adolescence, Summer plays out its story as a simple tale of love, youth and friendship. Thanks to Glenaan’s sensitive direction and Robert Carlyle’s salt-of-the earth charm, it’s both an affecting and sensitive drama.

Ailsa Caine