London to Brighton

Gritty Dramas are not usually my thing, but I saw this by chance and was very impressed by it. It's nearly impossible to make a first feature film. It's nearly impossible to make it good on as tight a budget as this was obviously shot on. The fact that it was made in such a short time is also another factor to be considered. And my consideration, after taking all these factors in to account is, this is brilliant! It is a strong story with plenty of moral interest, it has strong performances and a nicely done twist. I wish Paul every success with whatever he does next! He is a directing and writing talent to watch out for!

London to Brighton (2006)

A harrowing story, a real descent into a little sliver of the streetwalking underworld of London and the perils of little rich girls who run away from home. I don't mean to make light of any of it--the movie pulls no punches, and adds some that go beyond the usual violence, too--but this is one of those recent stories where a terrible situation is imagined, and then filmed with awful realism. The two tracks, the plot with its significance, and the raw, visceral reaction to seeing anything so horrible, are both played out to the max. And acting is really first rate. The bad guys are really sneeringly awful, and the two key females, a full grown but struggling prostitute and a young girl who gets swept up in it all, are so believable it's scary. And impressive.

And none of this is enough for a great movie. It makes for an intense experience, and there's no rule that says a movie has to be enjoyable (this is totally not enjoyable in the usual sense). But there is little here that reveals or probes, there is little of what you might call art, or nuance, or originality. It's not exactly a formula, yet, this kind of abuse in your living room, but I think it will be. There are several I've seen recently, the one that comes to mind is Julia. In both movies, young children are victims and it's difficult to really watch without detaching and looking around the living room and reminding yourself this is fiction, these are actors, don't worry.

Terrible things happen in the world, of course, and worse things. But I'm not sure we need to see them. It's like becoming an emergency room doctor because you are fascinated with suffering and blood. Movies should be like doctors, then (to stretch the metaphor) and have some purpose to them beyond wallowing.

And beyond representation. I think accurate representation is the simple motive behind the filming. The director (in this case with a short resume--I've never heard of him) makes it vivid, fast, and very real. In that sense he succeeded. But this realism could have been a means to a greater effect, a higher intention, something that takes the viewer somewhere. Anywhere.

The quiet in a London toilet is broken at 03:07 when a woman and a girl burst into it beaten and crying. The elder, Kelly, puts young Joanne into one of the cubicles and goes to get train tickets and some food. Not long after they are on a train to Brighton and safety. Meanwhile back in London, the cold criminal Stuart Allen makes it painfully clear to small time pimp Derek that he wants Kelly and Joanne brought to him.

I heard that this film was very grim stuff and as a result I skipped it in the cinemas, although I was "helped" in this decision by how quickly it came and went in the cinema. Watching it now I have to say that it is a shame that the film did not get more viewers because it an incredibly well delivered thriller set in a world of pimps and gangsters. This aspect could represent a turn-off to many viewers who perhaps have had enough of Lock Stock copycats in the British cinema, but rest assured that it is far from being that type of thing. Where some films revel in the gangster cliché, this film presents it unflinchingly as a cruel world of violence, grime and exploitation populated by those with few choices and no hope. This is convincingly delivered and it puts the viewer right into it to the point where I did feel uncomfortable and trapped.

The story is simple and what makes it so impressive is how it is delivered rather than just what happens. The strength of the film is in the edit, which brings out the story in a flashback structure that works very well. It allows for a strong finish and consistent tension that runs across both timelines of the film equally. What is almost as impressive as the edit are the performances that Williams gets from his cast; they are natural and convincing and all the bleaker for it. Stanley is brilliant as someone morally disgusted by her world but equally unable to think of anything else available to her. Groome is just as good and is heartbreaking in the way she moves from a child to an adult between scenes, with a confidence that is only on the surface. Harris is suitably morally bankrupt – a real "bad man", not a criminal with presence and power but the sort of man who would beat you for looking at him. Allen is a harder character because he does have to be a "crime lord" in this story of small fish but Spruell does pretty well to hold back and be a menacing force driving the story.

London to Brighton is not a cheerful film but it is a gripping thriller set in a convincing world of dirt and grubby people. The actors all convince and succeed in making us care for people giving £10 oral sex behind skips in the street but it is the structure and delivery of the story that makes it as good as it is, drawing tension simultaneously from both timelines of the same narrative. Grim but well worth it.

In London, the pimp Derek (Johnny Harris) assigns the prostitute Kelly (Lorraine Stanley) that works for him to find a young girl on the streets to escort the powerful mobster Duncan Allen (Alexander Morton). Kelly finds the twelve year-old runaway Joanne (Georgia Groome) in the train station and Derek proposes one hundred pounds for the service and the girl accepts. Kelly befriends Joanne and takes her to Duncan's mansion. When Joanne cries in the bedroom where she is with Duncan, Kelly runs and defends the girl. At 3:07 AM, the bruised Kelly and the tearful Joanne lock themselves in a public toilet. Kelly asks Joanne to stay there because she will raise some money for them to travel to Brighton. Meanwhile, Duncan's son Stuart Allen (Sam Spruell) calls Derek and asks him to meet him in a night-club. When Derek arrives, Stuart tells that his father is dead and he wants the responsible; further, he cuts his knee sinew to prove that he is not kidding. Derek calls his associate Chum (Nathan Constance) and they begin to chase the girls.

The excellent "London to Brighton" has a magnificent screenplay that discloses a crude and dark tale of friendship and lost of innocence through flashbacks and a surprising conclusion. This low-budget gem has a stunning cast, with top-notch performances, and the debut of director (and writer) Paul Andrew Williams in a feature could not be better. In the DVD, there is an awesome and cruel alternative ending that should not be deleted, as well the sequence in Duncan's bedroom with the two girls. The comradeship of Kelly and Joanne and the final redemption of Kelly protecting the girl are touching and beautiful. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Londres Proibida" ("Forbidden London")

Being hailed by some as 'the best British film of the century' (Big Issue) and 'British cinema at its best' (The Scotsman) and on the back of several prestigious film award from festivals around the world 'London to Brighton' has a lot to live up to. It doesn't disappoint, dark, violent, gritty and bleak this is what Mike Leigh would be like if he did 18 certificate films with Shane Meadows as his assistant. From the opening sequence of the two main characters bursting battered and bruised into a public toilet it grips like a hand round the throat and only lets up to become uncomfortable, it is certainly an assault on the senses and sensibilities of the cinema audience who take this brutal journey along with the characters on screen. Shot on a relatively low budget but managing to not seem so, the films main tricks are in the editing, jump cuts and flashbacks only adding to the suspense as you begin to piece together the whole sordid story. With some superb acting from the cast, especially Joanne who portrays her vulnerability like Toby Kebbell did in 'Dead Mans Shoes', and a suitably dirty soundtrack the whole thing feels very British. It has the grainy look of 'Get Carter' mixed with the grey of any Ken Loach, the backdrops of dirty streets and dirtier walls only make scenes like the two polystyrene cups blowing in the wind (reminiscent of the carrier bag in 'American Beauty') all the more beautiful. There are of course other nods like a shot that lingers on a doorway for ages instead of showing us what's happening inside which reminded me of a similar shot in Hitchcock's film 'Frenzy'. Although not an easy watch it manages to balance the bloody with the beautiful, the violence with the unlikely friendship between the two main female leads and triumphs just as everyone says as one of the best British thrillers of recent years. London to Brighton deserves to be a huge hit, its bold, its brilliant and its British and it proves once again that we have a thriving film industry packed full of talented people that can still give Hollywood a run for it's money.