Film review: The Worst Person in the World
Charming romcom about a young woman trying to find her way
The “hermit of Treig”, Ken Smith, has spent 40 years living alone by a loch in the Highlands in a cabin he built himself, said Phuong Le in The Guardian. This “tender” film tells his story, depicting him not as an “eccentric recluse”, but as a “gentle soul with a moving appreciation” for the natural world. Surviving in the wild, miles from the nearest road and with no electricity, turns out to be hard work: Smith catches fish, forages for food and chops his own wood – “no small feat for a man who is now in his 70s”. When he has a health crisis, however, the film’s soundscape of “babbling brooks and rustling trees” is replaced by the whirring of helicopter blades and the focus turns to how much longer he can survive off-grid. Nevertheless, debut director Lizzie MacKenzie’s film is a paean to the “simplicities of life” that feels “especially poignant in our hyper-connected time”.
With his “bright, bird-like eyes, untamed thicket of beard and boots that peel from his feet like banana skins”, Smith was always going to be a “fascinating subject”, said Wendy Ide in The Observer. This “lovely, compassionate” film also reveals that he is a man of genuine talent: a writer, as well as a “glorious” photographer, whose thousands of nature pictures, some of which appear here, throb “with life and love”. MacKenzie spent seven years getting to know Smith before he let her start filming, said Alistair Harkness in The Scotsman, and “that shows in the lovely bond that emerges as she gently draws out his life story, while probing him about the challenges he faces” in the wild. The result is an “illuminating picture of what makes a fulfilling life”.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
How long will Trump's honeymoon last?
Talking Points The first days of a presidency are often the best
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Why is the FDA slow to ban food additives?
Today's big question A legal loophole lets things slide
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Fukuoka: a Japanese metropolis with vibrant history, superb eating and a whole lot less tourists
The Week Recommends A harborside Japanese city that meshes the ancient and the very modern
By Scott Hocker, The Week US Published
-
6 charming homes for the whimsical
Feature Featuring a 1924 factory-turned-loft in San Francisco and a home with custom murals in Yucca Valley
By The Week Staff Published
-
Stacy Horn's 6 favorite works that explore the spectrum of evil
Feature The author recommends works by Kazuo Ishiguro, Anthony Doerr, and more
By The Week US Published
-
A family tour of Rajasthan by train
The Week Recommends The 'cacophonous, kaleidoscopic' cities of India are fascinating to explore
By The Week UK Published
-
The best new cars for 2025
The Week Recommends From family SUVs to luxury all-electrics these are the most hotly anticipated vehicles
By The Week UK Published
-
Babygirl: Nicole Kidman stars in 'riveting' erotic thriller
The Week Recommends 'The sex and the silliness' is quite fun, but it's 'ploddingly predictable stuff'
By The Week UK Published
-
Smoked haddock soufflé recipe
The Week Recommends Velvety soft soufflé has a delicate and enticing flavour
By The Week UK Published
-
Forbidden Territories: an 'ambitious and ingenious' exhibition
The Week Recommends 'Extravaganza' of a show features an array of works celebrating 100 years of surrealist landscapes
By The Week UK Published
-
Jonathan Sumption shares his favourite books
The Week Recommends The medieval historian recommends works by Edward Gibbon, Johan Huizinga and others
By The Week UK Published