Unassuming and darkly funny, The Party offers brilliant, time-bomb entertainment. It’s a sharp, finely crafted movie shot in black-and-white and thole whole thing is enjoyably ridiculous. The Party in question is brought together by Janet (Kristen Scott Thomas), a politician and her cranky husband Bill (Timothy Spall). Their guests include a smooth-talking financer, Tom (Cillian Murphy), who […]
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There’s nothing like a British “grit-film” to give you a slice of life, in the bleakest way possible. Tyrannosaur, like most British films, doesn’t hold back on its depiction of violence and abuse. For want of a better phrase, this is an up-close-and-personal kind of movie. It focuses on Joseph (Peter Mullan), a middle-aged widower, […]
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What can I say about This Is England after all these years … if you have not seen this, then you really are slacking! Set in 1983, this movie is full of tragedy, redemption and coming-of-age. 12-year-old Shaun (Thomas Turgoose) is a bored and aimless kid, who hasn’t had much happiness in his life. His dad died […]
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This is another film that combines personal conflict with tough fighting in the ring. Actor and screenwriter, Johnny Harris plays Jawbone’s main character, Jimmy McCabe. He based this boxing-drama on his own experience as a homeless ex-boxer in London. As much as I think boxing films are overdone, I keep being drawn back to this genre. It’s […]
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There’s not too many private eye, detective movies coming out these days, so London-set thriller, City of Tiny Lights, is a cool prospect. What caught my eye and made me give this a go, is the fact that the main character is played by a British Pakistani. I thought this was a nice, fresh change that […]
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Guns, gangs and free-for-all action in a Reservoir Dogs style setting: this is a bloodthirsty action-comedy. Just the way I like it. Set in 1970s Boston, Ben Wheatley’s Free Fire is about a gun deal gone horribly wrong. Irish mobsters, Chris (Cillian Murphy) and Frank (Michael Smiley) lead their pack of goons to an abandoned warehouse, to […]
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This festive-themed road movie, Hector has the spirit of Ken Loach hanging over it. It’s a social realist drama with Peter Mullan at the centre. He plays the titular Hector, a homeless man from Glasgow, seeking to reconnect with his family. I stumbled across this low budget British film on Netflix and I thoroughly enjoyed the warmth […]
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In T2 Trainspotting, Renton (McGregor) and the gang are back wreaking havoc in Edinburgh once again, twenty years on from their 1996 drug-fuelled adventure. This sequel is everything I could have hoped for – it’s funny, entertaining, visually sharp and it’s a joy finding out what these characters, now middle-aged, have been up to… Renton: Heading […]
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One of the many things I have great respect for is people who tell it like it is. This is precisely what Ken Loach does with I, Daniel Blake. It’s a film that left me with a knot in my stomach, as it dawned on me that Loach’s portrayal of a poverty-stricken Britain couldn’t be closer […]
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To say the British urban genre is the most disregarded film genre would be an understatement. I’ve seen a lot of these films over the years, the good ones and the bad ones. They take a no-nonsense approach to serious themes concerning race, poverty, drugs and other issues. These films are about stuff that matters. […]
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Can you blame a man for a crime he committed as a child? This is one of the questions melodrama, Boy A – adapted from Johnathan Tigwell’s novel – explores in abundance. The film tells the story of a rehabilitated juvenile killer (Garfield), the newspapers once called “Boy A”. After spending fourteen years in prison, he attempts […]
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It’s a filthy job getting to the top, especially for corrupt Edinburgh cop, Bruce Robertson (James McAvoy), who’s determined to secure a promotion to detective inspector. Drug-abusing and hard-drinking, he’s willing to do whatever means necessary to get what he wants. I’m always a sucker for any film starring James McAvoy. In comedy-drama Filth, adapted from […]
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