Shifty

Well its something we Brits are good at, making gritty dramas like Adulthood and even Bulletboy. Here we return to the genre with Shifty, set in a turbulent London gangland but also those it affects who are not a part of it. Violent and shocking, but its this quality that wins it for me unlike most movies that make the young viewers want to be a part of this world this movie shows us the other side of the glamour, the guns and the power. Those we love can get entangled in it and become at risk or in danger.

To many of us that is the one drawback of this life, again a stellar cast and top notch acting that could shame some of the more poor gritty films of this calibre out there. A star film pure and simple, a great addition to British cinema.

Shifty is a slow-burner that feels more like a play than an actual feature film. Made on a minute budge of £100,000, the film tells the story of Chris (Daniel Mays), a 20-something yr old who has returned to his old manor to see school mate ''Shifty'' (Riz Ahmed). Chris is now an adult with a responsible job, whereas Shifty has become a drug dealer, and still resents Chris for leaving the area in the first place. This film is remarkable for the chemistry formed between the two central characters, and the slow pace of the film adds a constant tension to proceedings, we know something ''shifty'' will happen, but where and when is anybody's guess. A brilliant and sophisticated drama, this added depth to the ''urban'' genre, also shout out to Masood from Eastenders, who gives an amazing performance in this as Shifty's older brother.

Yes, a good film, and for one made for a £100 grand a hell of an achievement. The performances were good to excellent (the Trevor character in particular was particularly convincing). I like the fact the film makers had not resorted to simplistic visuals to get the message across. For example the estate where they lived looked pretty nice and yet even with the sunshine you still felt this story was right there.

My only reservations are I didn't consider the banter was as convincing as everybody seems to think it was. But mainly it was the subject matter. Guns, gangsters, drugs, family conflict here we go again. Apparently, the original script focused on the dealer and his customers and that would have suited me more.

But if you get the chance to see it - well worth a look.

Another perfect example of how a film - regardless of it's budget can still be hugely effective if the story is told well. It's a pretty simple tale about a guy called Chris returning home to the town that he left behind, still tormented by the guilt that drove him away. His best friend Shifty has chosen a potentially destructive life path, and over the course of the day they attempt to re connect and face up to their problems, both past and present. Both Daniel Mays and Riz Ahmed are astonishingly good in this film. The subtlety of their relationship is believable and they really make you care about them. Jason Flemyng is suitably gruff as the local hood, and it's here that Chris has the chance to prove his loyalty to Shifty, where he once failed. Clearly shot on the cheap, this is one of the best British films I have seen in the past few years. Will be keeping an eye on all involved.

Shifty is a young drug dealer living with his older brother and earning a couple of grand a week. When an old friend comes to stay with him and asks him to come back up to Manchester to a safer, cleaner life, it marks the start of a rough day for Shifty, as his normal drop-offs are complicated by one customer who goes off the rails, and a rumour that has made it back to Shifty's supplier that he is cutting the product and selling for himself on the side.

Made for as little as £100k (which would not even buy you a one-second Megan Fox pout) this film is to be admired for how good it looks considering the constraints of the budget. However if praise was given out to independent films made for no money then there would not be enough to go around as there are plenty of similar attempts – just many of them really do show the lack of resource in all areas. It is not the case with Shifty because the film is an effective and well made affair that engages by virtue of how it is put together. The story is reasonably straightforward but it is written with a wider story behind it – one that we perhaps don't get all of but one that impacts onto the characters and their relationships and makes for a stronger character set and a more interesting film. I was interested in both Shifty and Chris as people as well as the grubby little world they inhabit.

On top of this the day in question also has some violent risks for Shifty and these add a semi-thriller touch to the story. Again, this isn't totally fleshed out all for the viewer to see but it works as it goes. It isn't perfect as a story but it does well to juggle a couple of different characters to add to the flow of the narrative while also avoiding being judgemental about any of them – your conclusion may be "drugs are bad m'kay" but the film does not seem to have that as an agenda but is just focused on telling the story.

The cast deserve credit for working on such a low budget film; OK they are not Hollywood stars used to commanding millions but there are several faces that will be recognisable from big films. The star of the film is Riz Ahmed, who does well for once not playing someone associated with 9/11 films. He is a likable character but he also conveys that edge of toughness and threat that he needs. He does good work with his face and eyes to ensure the viewer can sort of appreciate his thoughts without them being rammed down your throat. Mays has less of a showy role but he does the same – hits the character well and makes him convincing from the start and throughout, only weakening a little bit towards the end when I expected him to convey the impact of events a little better. Flemyng is a solid presence and a good face to help the film, while Simpson's Trevor is a tragic figure and he plays it well, making him a real person rather than a simple plot device to be either pitied or hated.

Shifty is not a brilliant film to be sure, it is far to slight for that but it is a particularly good one. It isn't social realism but it has an authenticity to it that helps make it work, with the well written and performed characters providing a strong base for the narrative to be built on. If it had cost ten times as much to make I still would have liked it but that it was made for so little is an impressive thing of note.