A Room for Romeo Brass

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

Shane Meadows is fast becoming one of the finest directors to come out of England, his films have such an earthy quality to them it's very hard to imagine that any Englishman can not find one film from his output that they can't identify with. Be it thematically or character wise. Meadows is the man from the street laying out his stories with honesty and gusto awareness. Whether Meadows will ever break out and be a hit outside of the British Isles is highly debatable, his Dead Man's Shoes from 2004 was well received away from his home shores, but you would be hard pressed to find anyone in American multiplexes (for example purposes only) who could tell you who he is, which for a director who has his finger firmly on the pulse of characterisation, that is a crying shame.

A Room For Romeo Brass is the tale of two teenage boys who during a fight with some bullies meet gangly loner Morell, as Morell starts to take an unhealthy obsession with Romeo's sister, their friendship is pulled apart, but this is merely the start of Morell's impact as he is about to explode into both of the boys already fractured families.

That's all you need to know really, for there is no more to tell, and this is one of Meadows's main strengths, there are no hidden agendas, no allegories of wars, this is just an everyday English housing estate with two families awash with everyday characters. Just how often do you see a loner in your neighbourhood? They are there, are they all like Morell? Well it may be best not to find out eh?

Paddy Considine makes his film debut here (thankfully he is now a name across the waters), and his turn as Morell is as scary as it is sad. Anyone who was impressed with his turn as the vengeful Richard in Dead Man's Shoes will be well rewarded here. A young Andrew Shim as Romeo grabs the role with sizzling vitality, a character calling for strength of nature whilst layering in a heartfelt slant that the story benefits from. I must mention big Frankie Harper (Dog in Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels), playing Romeo's estranged father, he gets it absolutely note perfect and I was delighted to see Meadows give him the film's crowning moment.

A film that opens with The Specials and closes with The Stone Roses should always appeal to an English heart, but lets get Shane Meadows' work out there to the masses, for here is a man who even gives an end credit mention for the man who turned on the generators, a man making films for the people, about the people in our midsts. 8/10

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.

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.

This is a truly great film, not seen by enough people in my opinion, Shane Meadows is a breath of fresh air for the British film industry, and I won't hesitate to go and see his next film, on the strength, of his last two ( twentyfourseven, romeo brass ) While most british audiences are somewhat ignorant to quality films like this, and would rather watch overrated films like 'Lock Stock...' there is always a hardcore of fans for films like this. Shane Meadows is inspired by the likes of Ken Loach and Mike Leigh, possibly Britain's best independent directors, but Meadows adds a bit more 'cheer' to this film, who says its uncool to have a happy ending? Romeo and Gavin are twelve year old pals, who have a great understanding of each other, and their surroundings, but then their friendship is tested when Morrel ( Paddy Considine ) enters their life, at first he is a pal, but why is a grown man hanging around with two boys? he then wants to date Romeo's sister, little do they realise they are being drawn into a world of obsession, violence and desperation, will it all come good in the end? Watch out for the outstanding performance from Paddy Considine, it really is the best debut from an actor ever!