This Is England '88

Get ready to cry, laugh and tie curling awkwardness. Just when you let your guard down and laugh. The next scene leaves you in anguish or tears. It's a master class in tragicomic relief. The settings put you right back in the 1980's, where kids and youth Rommedahl the streets. There are some absolute architectural "beauties" and prime 1980's dekor, That curbs any lurking nostalgia.

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

Picking up two years where the last instalment left off, TIE '88 catches up with the characters that were left behind from last time, with Woody (Joseph Gilgun) trying to settle down with a new girlfriend and angling for a promotion at work, whilst still trying to come to terms with the fact that his former love Lol (Vicky McClure) has given birth to a child by his best mate Milky (Andrew Shim), whose return will mark an explosive reunion between the pair. Meanwhile, Sean (Thomas Turgoose) finds himself in a personal crisis after enrolling in a drama class, while Lol herself is locked in her own personal hell, struggling to come to terms with what she was forced to do to her father and the fact Combo (Stephen Graham) is currently serving time for her crime.

This entirely unexpected latest instalment in the This is England saga came pretty much out of nowhere for me, and would, in all fairness, have been wrapped up perfectly with the last part. There didn't even appear to be any sort of publicity or build up to it, like there was with the last part. Still, with this all in mind, writer/director Shane Meadows proves there's still a lot of inspiration to be drawn from the source material, even if this feels, and was even sort of billed as, a stop off point between the last one and the allegedly explosive final part in the shape of This is England '90.

The dramatic dynamic is maintained in the driving force of the different plot lines involving the different characters, which consistently delivers as it always has. Meadows has, as ever, put a lot of effort in to recreating the bleak, desolate landscape of the Midlands back drop he grew up in, and the rough, hard bitten characters it bred. While there's plenty of flashes of light interspersed into the story, it's main focus is getting down to the tough, nitty gritty hard hitting drama, and this, at times, is pretty tough to watch. There's even an element of horror present, all of it psychological and more towards the end than the beginning, but just adding to the stomach churniness of it all that bit more.

While it's good that all of this is present, there just doesn't appear to be quite the tough, meaty chewiness to the material than there was to the last part and the film, merely feeling like an extension of the last part and the characters in that, like an update and a prelude to the next part. The narrative also loses it's flow a little, with certain dramatic plot developments suddenly abandoned here and there and never explored further, meaning the story loses it's substance a bit. Still, even if this is just a preview of what's to come, it's still an effective and powerful one. ***

The most recent (to date) of Shane Meadows's TV follow-ups to his hit film THIS IS ENGLAND, THIS IS ENGLAND '88 sees the viewer catching up with the gang some five years or so since the movie and two years since the events of THIS IS ENGLAND '86. Sadly, it's the weakest offering yet, and any interest generated in the setting and characters has long since diminished thanks to a distinct lack of originality.

I love the original film and THIS IS ENGLAND '86 had some strong, compelling moments when it eventually got going. This one doesn't. Once again, we get the dreary Lol moping around - surely this woman is one of the most depressing ever put on a TV screen? It's worse than EASTENDERS! Meanwhile, Shaun engages in an unlikely 'love triangle' plot - yeah, we had that already in '86 - while Woody attempts to lead an 'ordinary' life.

Gone is the power and compelling writing that made the earlier instalments so special. At this stage, I'm only watching because I'm interested in what happens to the characters, but it's becoming a chore to sit through. There are still great actors here - Joe Gilgun is given some great scenes at last - but the miniseries feels directionless, aimlessly delivering scenarios that are just too familiar to make an impact. And Stephen Graham's screen time is way too limited - let's hope he makes a triumphant return in THIS IS ENGLAND '90.

In 'This is England 88', Shane Meadows picks up the story of the group of young people whose lives he previously chronicled in a feature film and an earlier TV series. If I have to criticise this work, it's that it's structure is that of an extended coda to its predecessors; there's not much in the way of novel plot, and perhaps too many emotional "payoff" scenes, something Meadows does well but they have more impact when set at the end of a tauter, more defined story. But of course, such scenes are not the only thing that Meadows is good at. As usual, he gets great performances from his (mostly unprofessional) cast, and manages to make the bleak surroundings of working class England almost unbearably beautiful and affecting. This it top class television; but I also feel these characters, as brilliantly as they have bee brought to life, are now done.

Another excellent showing in the series.

Shaun now in college, studying drama, still with Smell. They aren't doing too good. I have to admit, this character is kind of annoying me now. He's just kind of irritating, but in a lovable way. That scene he has with Smell at the party was really heartbreaking. You really feel her pain. Hope things change in the 90 installment.

Poor Lol. She is going through so much in this latest installment. Now a single mother to, well you know whose baby it is. She has to bear the torment of what occurred and the guilt for Combo. All of which eventually bites her in the butt by the time this series ends.

Woody is the ultra superstar in 88. The performance was just amazing. You can feel the passion, you can really feel the anger. The way he reacts to the Christmas Day incident really pulls on the heartstrings. His love for Lol is undeniable.

It's amazing the power that a well written, acted, and produced piece of film/entertainment can have on you. I really feel like all the characters are my friends now. I'm an outsider looking in, but in a weird way I kind of feel like Shaun in the 1st installment. He was lost, they took him in and now he is like family to them. The viewer was lost in the first installment and with this being the 3rd in the series, we are now family.

I could go on and on. Just go and watch this. You'll be hooked right away.

This gets a LennyReviewz Score of: 9/10.