Rollin' with the Nines

Within the first five minutes it wasn't the nines I was rolling but my eyes . Oh dear I thought yet another British film where some white middle class posh boys straight out of film school produce a movie that tells what life is like in da ghetto where life is cheap short and brutal and the inhabitants speak in a unique language which makes no sense unless you're Ali G . Despite this I did give it a chance since it was directed by Julien Gilbey who did the very under rated RISE OF THE FOOTSOLDIER . I'm glad I did because this film is very engaging though perhaps not in a good way

Okay guv I confess . It's a fairly terrible movie . After the first five minutes we're treated to a drive by killing followed by a rape followed by a revenge killing . This all happens by the ten minute mark and the film has to pad out the next hour and a half by having gangland executions more retaliations and every sentence filled with the F and C words . At least I could understand the F and C words though , probably because I'm a white working class Celt . I didn't have a clue what the black characters were talking about and even if you're Brixton born and bred I guess you'd have no understanding of what this street lingo is . It goes way beyond parody and no matter who says what none of the dialogue sounds natural in anyway . We have a couple of corrupt cops and you'd be forgiven for thinking you're watching a comedy sketch show where a couple of comedians lampoon American cop shows . Their superior is referred to as " Captain " but as far as I know the Metropolitan police force don't have such a rank though they do in America . In more than a few places you think the action is taking place in an alternative universe where the Battle of Stalingrad meets South Central LA where the cops and the drug dealers engage in bitter house to house fighting

Yet despite all this or maybe because of all this ROLLIN remains very watchable . As I said it's a terrible film and is so over the top you worry the film might end up in orbit around Jupiter , but it's this deranged quality that keeps you watching similar as to watching a car crash . Some of the cast do deserve some praise such as Terry Stone for keeping a straight face as they spout their dubious dialogue , though some of them such as Roffem Morgan as Rage are guilty of some painfully obvious wooden acting . Watch the scene where Rage has sex in a toilet and I've got to admit I've shown more passion doing a crossword puzzle . Gilbey also has a strange framing technique where everything is shot in medium close up but I guess that might be down to a lack of budget . He does deserve some credit in crafting a film that is thoroughly unpleasant , populated by universally unlikable characters that has not an ounce of realism and yet it's a film I enjoyed in a sleazy sort of way . Not something I'd admit to in a hurry

STAR RATING: ***** The Works **** Just Misses the Mark *** That Little Bit In Between ** Lagging Behind * The Pits

Too Fine (Simon Webbe of boy band Blue) and his friends Finny (Vas Blackwood), Pushy (Robbie Gee) and Rage (Roffem Morgan) have formed an underground garage group called Too Fine and are hoping to make it into the big leagues. But it all goes tragically wrong when he is murdered by a rival gang leader over an unpayed street debt from his time selling rock on the streets. To make matters worse, with him gone, the weight of that burden falls on the shoulders of his sister Hope (Naomi Taylor) who is then beaten up and raped by his killer, with a promise of worse things to come if the debt is not settled soon. However, realizing there is no realistic way to settle the debt in time and to seek revenge for her brother's murder and her rape, she visits the man early one morning and blasts him to death. The dust seems to settle a little after this, until she learns that one of the man's top suppliers, gangster David Brumby (Billy Murray) has now lost a valuable source of income. Suggesting they work together instead of against each other, they split the difference and Hope and her brother's friends hit the streets again to sell the poison that got them by in the first place. However after an horrific nightclub shooting at the hands of Pushy and Rage in retaliation for Too Fine's murder, two persistent detectives start getting on their backs and it's only a matter of time before everything threatens to come crashing down around them.

This small, independent British gangster film has won acclaim at numerous Film Festivals and such, but has had an extremely limited distribution on it's release over here. But like other film's of it's sort, despite it's faults, it's destined to be one of those little seen gems that always gets this sort of distribution.

It's a film with a great sense of style, slickly shot and cleverly edited, as well as what is surely a very real depiction of the lives of those it is based around. It also delivers the goods in terms of being hard-hitting and powerful when it needs to be, with some strong, blood-thirsty violence with a lot of loud bangs present in some scenes. However it is the performances that are really noteworthy. Taylor has a certain sexiness to her in her role, a sort of strong black woman type which has appeal. Murray as Brumby is okay, but as soon as I saw him, I couldn't help but think of him as Johnny Allan from East Enders and hearing him use words like 'f*ck' and 'c*nt' really felt funny, especially as he says them in front of a lady, when you think of what a gentleman he's supposed to be in real life. Blackwood, Gee, Morgan and Webbe (making his film debut in what is a very small role) just sort of do what the script requires and fade into the background a little, but Terry Stone as one of the detectives has a good main role.

As I said, it has it's faults. It's not the most original sort of film we've been seeing at the moment, it's a bit excessive at times and it feels a little overlong. But if anywhere near you's showing it, it's a little released urban gem that's worth seeking out and seeing. ****

This debut deserved a lot more praise than it got.

Excellent foundations to launch from marred by the fact it didnt launch anyone.

Terry Stone shows that when he's not shouting his lines can actually give a decent turn. A very honest performance that for whatever reason he left on this set and took the Danny Dyer approach to acting instead. such a waste.

Gangster films are a stable of the British film industry, with many crime films coming out in some form or another each year. It is often a safe bet to make it a debut feature, but every few people could match the success of Guy Ritchie or Matthew Vaughn.

Too Fine (Simon Webb), Pusher (Robbie Gee) and Rage (Roffem Morgan) are three friends who seem to make it out of the ghetto and on the edge of becoming underground rap stars. But one night Too Fine is shot dead and his sister Hope (Naomi Taylor) is raped and threaten by a drug dealer, Temper (Patrick Regis). Hope gets her revenge and Pusher, Rage and their friend Finny (Vas Blackwood) take control of Temper's operation for a drug kingpin (Billy Murray) after killing his crew. But on the case of is police detective (Terry Stone), wanting to get them killing a young waitress in a club shooting and use any method to get them.

Director Julian Gilbey is seen as a raising star as a director and he does have some talent, he can work with a budget, he can deliver on action and keeps the film going at a fast pace. The action scene in the gun runner's house looked and felt very much like a similar scene in Bad Boys 2 and there is a solid car chase in the countryside. But this is a very unfocused film, not knowing whether to focus on Hope and the crew or the police investigate, the scene in the gun runner's house felt like it belonged in a different film and that the crew were not on screen for quiet awhile. It could have easily have been about Hope who after getting raped and her revenge becomes a female gangster and the crew rise and fall but Hope still having the trauma of the rape in the back of her mind. Or it could have been about a dirty/corrupt cop who after seeing an innocent person gets killed or injured has a moral crisis as they investigate the crime. Rollin' With the Nines also felt very much like it was trying to be an American film, including the police detectives having guns, when only specialist armed units in the police are allowed to use guns in the UK and the police ranks are very American, like using Detective and Captain instead Detective Sergeant and Superintendent or DCI. This is also a film that enjoyed violence, using a lot of blood instead of being a more realistic tone I believe that the filmmakers were trying to aim for.

Rollin' With the Nines almost felt like an non well written version of The Wire, focusing on a duel narrative about a police investigation and different ranking gangster in a drug operation and the police even using a homeless crack addict as an informant, even if the relationship is different.

The acting throughout is pretty weak. The best performance came from Simon Webb which is very surprising because he is a pop singer and he dies in the first 10 minutes. The black characters are speak in typical 'ghetto' speak, using slang all the time and because of their different ages they did not even look like they should be friends. The police are simply geezers who break the rules and it seem like the film was trying to have it both ways, showing the police to be corrupt and willing to sell drugs for their own profit but want to do the right thing, bring down big drugs rings and murders. Rollin' With the Nines suffers from having no likable characters; they are violence or corrupt and have few redeeming features. If it was meant to be a story about the corrupting affects of crime on both sides or that they are no good guys in this world, but it did not success on that front. And because of the unfocused nature of the film it felt like it did not know who the protagonist is and there for who the audience is meant to route for.

Rollin' With the Nines shows that Gilbey had some potential behind the camera, but needed more focus on a character and story level. He also had a problem of being too violence, enjoying using the blood packs a bit too much. But you can do a lot worst then this film.

Like 'Scarface' 'Rollin with the Nines' is set to be a cult movie. This Movie is all about a very hotly debated topic which is spiralling out of control namely "Black on Black" Gun Crimes in the UK. It's not about white cop's even though they play a small part. Let it be know this Movie is about Urban-Life in the UK, what we call "The grime". In the same way that movies like 'Boyz in the Hood' and 'Menace to Society' awoke the general American psyche this film is destined to do likewise. 'City of Gods' told a story which the general World-population was totally oblivious to and 'Rollin with the Nines'will no doubt have the same affect. The Lead is prodigiously played by VAS BLACKWOOD(Rory Breaker, Lock-Stock and Two Smoking) Who delivers Machiavellian style performance. Robbie Gee(Snatch)Commands the Screen with such poetic intimidation that he reminded me of a Young Samuel L. Jackson. The third male lead is played by Newcomer Roffem Morgan and trust me given the right breaks this Kid will become a Star. The Female lead is played Naomi Taylor. This is also Naomi first film debut and for her Stardom is only a plane ticket too Hollywood away. 'Rollin with the Nines' is a gun slinging, crime don't pay Hit Movie. Finally the soundtrack left me Breathless. Go see this movie.