Le Donk & Scor-zay-zee

As you might imagine, I had great expectations of this film, indeed I have great expectations of any film starring Britain's scariest actor Paddy Considine. But this was yet another sleight outing from Shane Meadows who had the semi-eponymous Mr Considine giving a fine performance, but, mysteriously, as David Brent!

Nevermind, I found his companion-in-title Scor-Zay-Zee fascinating, all the more so when I contemplate he is actually a rapper! Extra marks were on offer if Shane had turned his camera across the road at the final Arctic Monkeys gig for a quick shot of my old school.

All in all, an opportunity missed!

Ron

(Viewed 10Oct09)

A few years after the heights of This is England, Shane Meadows and Paddy Considine came out with this little seen film which is a sort of reality-mockumentary. The film follows a roadie of sorts ahead of him setting up for the Arctic Monkeys and also trying to secure a warm-up slot for podgy white rapper Scor-Zay-zee. In the style of a reality show it is mostly unscripted as it follows Le Donk around from his parent's home to his pregnant ex-girlfriend.

This sat on my queue for quite some time before I finally decided to watch it and I think the reasons for this are pretty clear. Even from the description the film looks like something that was thrown together in about five days on the barest expenses and it looks like that might be a bad thing, despite it being something the makers boast about. This is exactly what the film turns out to be though and it is not always a good thing. Working with a very basic script and improvising a lot of stuff is tougher than it looks; you think it must be possible to work it out in the edit but the truth must be you have hours of rubbish because the reason people sound cool in movies is that it is scripted, rehearsed and refined – in real life you have to just say whatever comes, which isn't that good often. And so it is in this film because what is missing from it is meaning.

It is character driven – they are in the titles, they are the focus of the plot and they are the only reason cameras are there – so it only stands to reason we have a film about them as characters. The door is open in particular for the film to find the person behind the swagger and noise in Le Donk but the film never does it. It would be tough to achieve this all improvised but it could have been done with clearer scene structure and direction, and it would have made the film better by some margin as it would have given something for the viewer to follow. It sort of happens, but that's about the height of it because mostly Le Donk is a comedy character (who isn't particularly funny) and we don't learn a terrible lot about him.

This isn't Considine's fault though, because he at least makes the film watchable by virtue of his performance. He is an arrogant idiot who is full of unjustified toughness and it shows to everyone except him. I would have loved Meadows to partially script some scenes to make more of this character but I guess that what happens when you limit yourself to a few days to make the film. Palinczuk is likable and has some ability with writing for sure, but again there isn't a person here – what you see is all we're allowed to get. Colman is an odd find but is natural here, while the star power of the Arctic Monkeys at least doesn't get in the way of the film.

Overall though, this is a so-so film. It is driven forward by Considine and the gimmick of how it was all made, but these are not enough on their own. It works well considering it was improvised but to be honest it could have done with a bit more of a structure in terms of the characters to allow us to benefit from it being so tightly focused on them. This is a novelty, but it could have been better with just a little bit more work in regards character and character development. Worth a glance for Meadows/Considine fans, but for the casual viewer it will feel like a joke stretched thin.

This is a seriously funny film, for so many different reasons. If you like the dynamics of Meadows and Considine in films such as Dead Mans Shoes and A Room for Romeo Brass then this film will amaze you.

Firstly Considine has a real East Midlands English edge to him when he acts with Meadows, those shifty unpredictable eyes, and that stare that lasts a little bit too long. Naturally he is a scary actor, and so to see him become a goofy, comedic clown is so surprising it takes half the film to convince yourself it's actually him.

The film is improvised and yes they probably shot miles of footage for the 71 minutes used, but my God they looked like they were having a great laugh. Meadows can often be heard pissing himself laughing in the background when Considine throws out some serious offbeat ideas (and words). This in itself made me laugh.

The comedy is funny because it feels quite natural, you spend most of the time laughing at the characters and the anecdotes they spill, more than you do at the situations they are in, which adds something really interesting to the film, it's not a slapstick for the Americans.

The film holds together fairly well, but I didn't really care about that, I just enjoyed laughing out loud to it. I would recommend though watching Dead Mans Shoes just before to give you an amazing contrast, and sharpen the experience.

Like I said it's funny, entertaining and if you like any of the actors or meadows in it - it's a must see. I just wished I was there when they shot it.

The success of Shane Meadows' recent television series on Channel 4 will hopefully spike a revival of interest in his brilliant movies; including this one, his funniest film yet. In his youth, Meadows was in a band with Paddy Considine, whose career as an actor he later helped launch; and the two are back together here, with Meadows playing a fictionalised version of himself, a film-maker shooting a documentary about the life of a roadie (Considine) and his musical protégé, a most unlikely rapper. Considine is great, as ever, in playing the part of a social misfit utterly lacking in self-awareness: the film is full of laugh-out-load moments, yet still manages to be touching in places. I don't know if the low budget is the reason why the role of a supposedly new-born baby is played by a child who's practically a toddler, and it's scarcely a weighty piece, but it's delightful nonetheless. I continue to find Meadows' ongoing struggle for commissions amazing - to me, he's the best film-maker we have in the U.K. right now.

Shane Meadows has earned an incomparable amount of slack over the course of his 13 year career, and although this takes an even bigger cut than last year's well observed but insubstantial Somers Town, its an enjoyable watch.

And although real life Nottingham rapper Scorzayzee gets top billing, this is basically the Paddy Considine show, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

Its dramatically underpowered and about as edgy as an episode of Last Of The Summer Wine, but its short and peppy and there are quite a few laughs in it.

But no 71 minute film should really be allowed to have four heedless musical montages in it.

And I'd have been monumentally p*ssed off if I'd have paid to see it in a cinema.