Starred Up

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning

Eric Love (Jack O'Connoll) is a couple of years younger than necessary to be transferred from a young offender's institution to an adult prison, but due to his explosively violent nature, a rare exception has been made. He seems under control, until he is disturbed while sleeping by another inmate and ferociously over-reacts. After trying and failing to talk his way out of the situation, his inflamed, anti-authoritarian streak bursts to life and he proves tricky for Governor Hayes (Sam Spruell) and his staff to deal with. From here, he encounters two people who may be the key to turning him round: dedicated social worker Oliver (Rupert Friend) and Neville (Ben Mendolsohn) the equally violent head of the wing...who also happens to be his dad.

While the harsh reality of prison life is rarely glossed over in any sort of filmed medium, save for maybe Ronnie Barker's hit sitcom Porridge, since the late '70's nothing quite like Alan Clarke's Scum has come close to matching the gritty brutality and hopelessness of prison life, leaving it a genre just begging to be dragged in to the 21st century with a fresh injection of raw adrenaline. The opening half of David Mackenzie's film seems to rely on atmosphere rather than exposition, with a dialogue light opening half as the lead protagonist is lead to his cell, and made to go through the various rituals and indignities on his way there until the door is locked shut. When O'Connoll first speaks (in a cockney accent!) it's with the prison lingo that will make no sense to those who don't know it, and from there on in he frequently opens his mouth with savage ferocity and intense profanity.

Starred Up is hailed as O'Connoll's 'break through' film, and there's no doubt he's running the show here, firmly commanding his presence as the explosive thug with raging personal issues blaring inside him, in a role that he's got form with and suits well. It's the closest thing he may well have in making him a household name, or at least getting a cult following among some. There are strong supporting turns also from Friend as the impassioned social worker and Mendolsohn as the closest thing to an authority figure O'Connoll will be made to respect. It's a film driven more by the nature of his respective relationships with these two men, and as such it feels more about these human dynamics rather than the story, which by the end has lost it's coherence a bit and loses your attention, despite the ensuing events still holding your attention for other reasons.

Still, sometimes, a film needs to come along that hits you like a punch in the dark, and Starred Up fits the bill perfectly, a brutal, unflinching expose of a world most of us probably don't want to imagine, a little flawed, but mostly solid. ****

For a film that seemed to come out of nowhere, with a limited advertisement campaign and small budget, Starred Up has proved to be one of the more ballsy pictures released in some time - and with a UK release date sandwiched between two major blockbuster sequels, it had to do something to stand out from the crowd.

The main attribute of the film is its acting, most notably central character Jack O'Connell; a career-best performance from our lead protagonist serves as the driving force of the film, immersing the audience so much in the drama of it all that we can't believe we're feeling sorry for the prick we thought we knew in the opening stages.

However we all know that good acting doesn't necessarily constitute a good film; but placing such talent in the hands of David Mackenzie and providing a gripping (albeit unoriginal) story line is a damn good combination.

Despite the many positives, where this film fails is in the variety of on-screen shenanigans. Although it does slowly progress, the day-to-day life on the inside seems repetitive and predictable, particularly when the overall message is all too familiar and practically clichéd.

All in all however, Starred Up is one of the best prison dramas in a long time, and probably the best British film this year. Not for the faint-hearted, this superbly acted drama will scare you into following the law to the strictest command.

STARRED UP is another modern-day prison flick, this time a British one. Before everybody starts groaning and thinking "what, again?!", let me reassure you that this one's not sugar-coated at all. There's no sentiment here, just brutality throughout, and yet it becomes an immersive and thought-provoking experience. Even with all the violence and bad language and animalistic behaviour, there is still light at the end of the tunnel.

The film features Jack O'Connell ('71) in a star-making performance as a disturbed young man who has just been transferred (aka starred up) to men's prison from juvenile. To complicate things further, his own father is an inmate, and the two have a volatile relationship. I've seen the Australian actor Ben Mendelsohn before in a few Hollywood flicks and didn't think much of him, but he's a perfect fit for the part here.

A lot of the usual prison clichés are played out here, but they happen in a matter-of-fact and dare I say it grimly realistic way. The violence is brutal but not overdone, and it does serve a purpose rather than being gratuitous. And the realism is top-notch, reminding me of the BRONSON film at times. Despite all this writer Jonathan Asser manages to tell a believable storyline with an identifiable beginning, middle, and end. It's a good little film, although not for all tastes given the subject matter.

The unsociable and brutal nineteen year old Eric Love (Jack O'Connell) is transferred from an young offender institution to an adult prison because of his violence. On the arrival, the voluntary therapist Oliver Baumer (Rupert Friend) invites Eric to participate in his group of therapy. However Eric meets his missing father Neville Love (Ben Mendelsohn) that is the henchman of the prison leader Dennis Spencer (Peter Ferdinando). Neville tries to control Eric and affects his participation in the therapy. Meanwhile the Deputy Governor Hayes (Sam Spruell) does not believe in Baumer's treatment and gives one chance only to Eric to improve his behavior.

The title "Starred Up", for people not native in English like me, describes the early transfer of a criminal from a young offender institution to an adult prison. The story is written by Jonathan Asser and is based on his experiences working as voluntary therapist at the largest adult prison in the UK in South West London in England. The plot follows the teenager Eric Love and is cruel and realistic, and may be consider a sociological study. The direction and performances are impressive, giving the sensation of a documentary and with no corny redemption. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Encarcerados" ("Imprisoned")

don't know who made this film... just watched it last night...Was far better than i expected... No holds barred. Research has clearly been done well. acting was very good by all, especially the kid. surprised i haven't seen these people before. the violence depicted is brutal but accurate as an everyday occurrence in uk jails. even the methods used in applying that violence and the slang language are all about right. The only other film i can compare it to is "Bronson".. as thats the only other prison film i have seen recently. i would say bronson portrays dramatisation and artistic licence,, also i didn't find bronson to be consistent with the storyline....starred up is none of those,,,,the storyline is extremely consistent.. the only gripe i have with this film is that several obvious questions were left unanswered at the end. doesn't spoil the film though