Goldfish Memory : Plot, Cast, Soundtrack, Critical reaction Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Goldfish Memory

2003 Irish film

2003 (2003)

Running time

85 minutesCountryIrelandLanguageEnglishBudget€ 900,000

Goldfish Memory is a 2003 Irish feature film about everyday relationships, set and filmed in Dublin. It was written and directed by Elizabeth Gill.

Plot

The movie is set around a small group of characters experiencing relationships which build and crumble before the viewers' eyes. The title of the film refers to the belief, expressed by several of characters, that the goldfish retains a memory of something for only three seconds. Tom, one of the principal characters in the film, draws comparisons between this and the human tendency to jump from one relationship to the next, "forgetting" the pain that any previous one might have caused. The film shows complexities involved in straight, gay, lesbian, and bisexual relationships. Writer/director Liz Gill says the film was influenced by the work of directors Robert Altman and Richard Linklater, particularly Linklater's film Slacker.

Cast

Sean Campion as Tom
Fiona O'Shaughnessy as Clara
Fiona Glascott as Isolde
Peter Gaynor as David
Keith McErlean as Red
Stuart Graham as Larry
Lise Hearns as Rosie
Jean Butler as Renee
Justine Mitchell as Kate
Aisling O'Neill as Helen
Demien McAdam as Conzo
Flora Montgomery as Angie
Joe Keever as Eddie the Cameraman
Britta Smith as Mrs. Devine
Niall O'Brien as Taxi Driver

Soundtrack

The film's soundtrack acted as something of a showcase for the Irish alternative music scene of the time. Alongside relatively established bands like The Frames and The Walls, it also featured up and coming acts like Rodrigo y Gabriela, Nina Hynes and Messiah J and the Expert.

Four songs by the legendary Brazilian Bossa Nova composer Tom Jobim were remade for the movie, three of which ('Once I Loved', 'Waters of March' and 'Desafinado') were performed by Damien Rice with Lisa Hannigan (vocals) and Vyvienne Long (cello). The other ('Lamento No Morro') was performed by Richie Buckley.

Critical reaction

Peter Bradshaw, writing in The Guardian, described Goldfish Memory as a "forgettable" and "vapid relationship comedy, reminiscent of the sponsorship ads that wrap around the commercials during TV's Friends".^[1]