7 Miles Out

The first shot of 7 Miles Out – of a black-and-white terraced house in Stockport – suggests we are about to see a weepy tale of provincial working-class hardship. Then the music kicks in.

Riotously atmospheric hits from post-punk Manchester are the soundtrack to Carol Morley’s coming-of-age drama, which cloaks its musical outbursts in a diffuse haze of desaturated colours that create a nostalgic, dreamlike aesthetic. Morley may ditch the black and white two seconds in, but there is plenty of sadness in this story, which is based on her own semi-autobiographical novel.

Spanning three stages of Ann’s adolescence (played as a child by Amelie Hughes and as a teenager by Lucy Halliday), the film begins with the promise of middle-class life, symbolised by a new job in Manchester for Ann’s dad, Ronald (Aidan Gillen), and the car that comes with it. But this reverie is soon shattered when a traumatic event destabilises Ann’s life, her childhood idealism giving way to the self-destructive behaviour of her teenage years. 

Riotously atmospheric hits soundtrack Morley’s coming-of-age drama

As in her wider filmography, Morley is interested in what makes a person who they are. This time, it’s herself. 7 Miles Out is the PG version of her story, already immortalised with gritty authenticity by her acclaimed documentary The Alcohol Years (2000). Here, she has instead opted for a refreshingly colourful, warm-hearted approach that dispatches its fair share of suicide, depression and underage everything with an unwavering sense of hope.

But such levity comes at the expense of genuine emotional weight. A lengthy pursuit of Joy Division tickets is given ample screen time at the expense of more complex topics (like teen pregnancy, friendship breakdowns and sex addiction) and the film vacillates between the unexamined and the obvious. Morley often hits her target too squarely, despite the amusing dialogue (‘I’ve shagged him. He gave me my first croissant,’ Ann says of Tony Wilson, legendary TV presenter, record label owner and Manc godhead). 

Morley has made an origin story not just for herself, but for post-punk Manchester, only seven miles away from her home in Stockport. The film’s representation of the sites and sounds of the Mancunian music industry is rollicking. From Joy Division to New Order and the legendary nightclub The Haçienda, Morley pays homage to the city’s iconic post-punk era.

It’s no wonder the musical performances are the film’s most compelling moments. Whether it be dancing to their idols or performing original music (co-written by Morley, drawing on her experience in her own post-punk band), the film’s heart lives in these encounters, which capture music’s unparalleled ability to console and inspire.

7 Miles Out premiered at the BFI London Film Festival.