Jack Said

This the second of the "Jack" movies and was an improvement from the first "Jack Says" with more detailed skyline shots of London and better camera angles maybe the increased budget was helpful. The Acting from Simon Phillips just gets better and better and is a fast rising star who will one day be a household name, I just hope he doesn't get stuck in an Eastenders character as he has a lot to offer. OK, he's notably put on a little weight in this movie compared to the first "Jack" movie but fortunately it doesn't spoil his character so that doesn't matter. There are lots of twist's and turns but you find your way as it goes and I got hooked and can't wait to see the third "Jack Falls" as there is unfinished business that I and Jack need to know. It's a unfortunate Mike Reid and Rula Lenska weren't here or unable to be there as they were so good in the first movie but this movie does hold up on it's own without the big guns although Danny Dyer does a superb job working with Simon. This is a raw gritty London movie relatively very low budget class movie compared to Hollywood films but is the sort of film production that is a great change from the usual gloss. This movie has it's own style with it's dark "Noir" mixed with some dark colour, harsh language, blood and guns quite a violent series well worth a visit for some great escapism ….I loved it.

I am so so disappointed in this film. This had unbelievably bad acting (much of this blame must go to the director, who, after watching the dailies, must have seen what i saw? I say this because the actors (some of whom i've seen in other films - Terry Stone was quite good in Rise Of The Footsoldier) are not bad but the acting was. The lead character is too porky to be a convincing lead man in this type of role and the female gangster's 'I'm from Lahndon, me' accent was atrocious. The continuity errors were pretty outstanding too with photos being put into one pocket, only to miraculously appear in another, minutes after receiving it. I have sadly had to give this a one star rating as it's a case of been there seen that, but executed in a much much better way.

While scoring the film a 2 I will say that it does however not stink as much as that score would suggest, its just that having sat through this banal attempt at noir (which is best left to the Americans)I cannot rate it any higher while I still have the pathetically unrealistic female lead characters cartoonish unconvincing nut job still in my head.

The lead character is also a little...no....a lot on the unbelievable side as are all the characters...in fact...maybe this should have been made as a cartoon.

It is cheap, nasty, embarrassingly bad in places, maybe the only redeeming feature is the score.

I am sure that the film will have some appeal with 14 year olds who stumble over it but really the poor acting and ridiculous dialogue coupled with the slap inducing 'acting' of the lead female character means this should be out on DVD very soon......

Maybe I should rate it 1.

Apparently JACK SAID is the middle part of a trilogy, although after watching this misfire I have to say I'm in no hurry to watch the other instalments. This is Cockney gangster film-making at its very worst, a tired mess of a storyline propping up a film chock-full of bad acting and worse.

The lead actor here, Simon Phillips, is undoubtedly the worst thing about this production. Watching this chubby guy wandering around attempting to do 'presence' and 'attitude' is frankly an embarrassment. His supposedly quick-witted humour is even worse, and I was hoping one of the other characters would lamp him before long. Needless to say that they never do.

The narrative is all over the place. Danny Dyer features heavily as a friend of the lead, but is off the screen for long periods of time and doesn't really contribute much when he's on it. Instead we get the usual low-rent gangster hokum nonsense, and whoever decided to put Ashlie Walker as the main villain needs their head examined; an average episode of HOLLYOAKS would be a better fit, I think. At least David O'Hara has the sense to only appear in a scene or two of this nonsense.

I loved this film and would have to say it's one of my favorite movies of this genre. Absolutely riveting film about Jack, an undercover cop who has to find his way into a family the police have been trying to get close to for some time. Jack has to make some life changing decisions about how to deal with a predicament he finds himself in as a result of getting too close to the crims he's supposed to bring down. Lots of plot twists. Well written, well acted and a credit to the genre.

Time is spent giving the characters depth so you either become attached to, or despise them. It's got all you could ask for. The moral dilemma, the love interest, the loyalty to job or friend, betrayal, revenge - and it works.

It's the sort of movie that leaves you stunned at the end with lots of questions about the morality of the police. Well worth watching.