UPDATE: The trailer has been removed at the request of the studio. Sorry for any inconvenience that this may cause.
Don’t panic – it’s not a feature-length Coldplay video. On the contrary, X + Y appears to be something altogether lovely and uplifting. Having made his 2007 BAFTA nominated TV documentary, Beautiful Young Minds, director Morgan Matthews brings us playwright James Graham’s fictionalized version of that story – which centres around the International Mathematics Olympiad.
Starring Asa Butterfield (Ender’s Game) as Nathan – a young student whose specific ‘traits’ place him on the autistic spectrum – the film charts his time with his dedicated teacher, played by Rafe Spall (Life Of Pi), and his mother, played by Sally Hawkins (Blue Jasmine). Between them, they nurture his affinity for numbers and set him on the road to joining the British Math Team in Taipei for the International Math Olympiad. It is here, amidst these new circumstances that Nathan’s rigid life begins to open up to the realm of infinite possibility.
Though the trailer itself seems overlong and overstuffed, it certainly gives a sense of what we can expect from the film itself – and it is every bit as heartwarming and life affirming as one would hope for. The story features popular themes along the lines of ‘strive for what you wish for’ and ‘live your life with an open heart,’ with a resounding chorus of ‘seize the day’ – but it somehow feels fresh and unexpected, even when the trailer indicates the blossoming romantic interest between Nathan’s teacher and mother.
The supporting cast seem to be turning in powerhouse performances as well – particularly the always underrated Eddie Marsan (Ray Donovan) – but it will almost certainly be the central actors that attract the attention here. It’s not too much of a stretch to predict that X + Y will bring Rafe Spall the kind of next-level roles that he has long deserved, with what looks to be a deadpan, understated rendition of an invested man with his own hefty baggage.
No release date has been announced yet, but you can check the trailer out below.
