A Room for Romeo Brass

Previous to catching this I'd watched a little bit of the earlier critically acclaimed Meadows film, "24:7", enjoyed the portion I saw very much and then was rudely interrupted. Consequently, when I got the chance to borrow "... Romeo Brass" I was mildly excited, if a little unsure about what to expect. 90 minutes later I lay in bed incredibly satisfied. I had seen an example of British cinema carrying on the traditions of artists like Ken Loach. ".. Romeo Brass" is a stunning and disturbing examination of human relationships. The several tone shifts within the film are the result of steady direction rather than shoddy plotting, and Paddy Considine's remarkable performance as "Morell" more than compensates for some shaky rendering by a few of his co-stars.

Meadows here creates characters who are unfailingly interesting and rarely easy to predict. The film is a concentrated treasure-trove of wonders, and certain sequences will live with me through many future years of filmic consumption. After seeing this particular effort, I will now make it my mission to absorb everything else that Meadows has done in his career so far. So indeed should you. A marvellous film.

I had my arm twisted to go and see this and was knocked out by the unsentimental acting of the two central young characters (Gavin and Romeo), as well as the brilliant accuracy of the dialogue (uncertain, banal and lyrical portrayals of tenderness and callousness coexisting wonderfully well). But I want to take this opportunity to talk about the cinema in which I saw it. The Plaza Community cinema in Crosby is absolutely brilliant for showing this film. it is run by a highly dedicated group of volunteers, whose leader (Janet) saved the cinema almost single handed from the ravages of the developers. It shows a great variety of films and is the nearest thing Merseyside gets to the Cornerhouse in Manchester. keep up the good work Janet.

It was so pleasurable to watch this lovely film about the quest for friendship and loyalty in an often cruel and punishing world. Meadows has been described as a Midlands Scorsese; however, to my mind there is a vein of sweetness, naivete, in Meadows' work, as in the man himself, that is absent from Scorsese's films. He captures, with reason - since much of his material is autobiographical - the jocular and tender aspects of working class life while rendering vividly the violence that can also lurk there. His dramas are always holding and infinitely endearing in a tough minded way. In this film, Meadows' love is obviously directed at the valiant and caring mothers, but he allows the fathers of the boys, who appear never to get it right, to finally redeem themselves, each in his own way.

In talking with Shane Meadows, I learned that he recruits his actors from the 6 - 20 year old group of actors in his town, and that he is very proud of the fact that, by this means, he can help them take a step toward extricating themselves from their hard lot in life. Shane Meadows is a survivor and an artist, one who has the heart and the enormous ability to give heart to others who must still find their way. Bravo!!!

Let me get to the point about this film. Paddy Considine is outstandingly brilliant in the role that should have made him an icon if anyone had bothered to see it! He is at once dynamic, dangerous, disturbing and occasionly comic. He reminded me of Travis Bickle that De Niro so brilliantly played in Taxi Driver. High praise indeed, but very deserving as we are in an age where everybody moans about British cinema without bothering to seek gems like this out. So well done to Shane Meadows, keep churning out class like this and 24/7 and you'll become a legend!! From The West Midlands

Hidden as it was in the BBC schedules, I nearly missed this gem of a film. Shane Meadows seems to improve with every picture, following up the raw promise of 'Small Time' and the almost great 'TwentyFourSeven' with this priceless jewel, which is proof that Meadows alone carries the torch of the British film industry forward amidst the Guy Ritchie pap we churn out on a regular basis.

Although the acting from some of the minor characters was a bit on the dodgy side, Paddy Considine shone as the socially inadequate Morrell and the two lads (and their fathers in a memorably frightening final scene) did a solid job. Credit must also go to the screenwriter Paul Fraser, who has breathed some life into the cliched, patronizing 'working class' sceenplays that featured in 'Brassed Off', or (worse) 'The Full Monty'. The usual 'working class' signifiers (a guest appearance by Kathy Burke, or chain smoking as a character trait) were thankfully missing.

'A Room For Romeo Brass' was an excellent piece of observation. The character Morrell brings back awful memories of acquaintances I had in my youth, and these people still hang around the estate like the foulest of stenches. The film replicated 'life' in a way that Danny Boyle would fail to comprehend.

There were some minor imperfections (for instance, the music was over the top), but Meadows is only 29, he has time to perfect his craft. For everyone disillusioned with British film and its compulsion to chase the dollar, this film will restore that lost faith.