For this week’s overlooked selection, I have chosen a film from 2007 – Tom Vaughan’s Starter for Ten. The screenplay is adapted by David Nicholls, who also wrote the novel.

This film has many elements to its credit:

• It is a lighthearted coming of age story
• It is set in the mid-1980’s in Thatcher’s Great Britain
• It has an awesome cast: James McAvoy, Dominic Cooper, Benedict Cumberbatch, Alice Eve, Rebecca Hall and a well-played Catherine Tate.
• The soundtrack is equally awesome and is currently in rotation on my iPod

If you are from the States like me, you may have to look past the rather obscure title (I have since figured out what it means). I suspect in many circles the title did not do it any great favors in broadening its appeal. This despite the fact that Tom Hanks is one of the producers of the film.

Here is the U.S. trailer:

Unfortunately the voice over in this trailer is rather annoying and it is obvious to that the film was marketed to the American audience with a strong “rom-com” emphasis. Of course, these are some of the thematic elements which run through the film, but this is not a fair or complete representation of the film. Take a look and judge it for yourself.