We’ve all had rough upbringings. Where I was raised we didn’t even have a Bagel Factory – we had to fend for ourselves and mummy would often have to make sandwiches from scratch. Holidays were limited to two a year and some of the boys at prep school were absolute rotters.
Six years after killing Trife, Sam Peel is released from prison and soon finds out that people have long memories. Some have moved on and tried to build a life for themselves, others are still living with the past, but everyone remembers. Sam nearly gets killed within hours of his release and wants to put a stop to the violence – meanwhile, the rest of Ladbroke Grove and Latimer Road are busy dealing, shagging, working, robbing and using.
The journey begins, and Sam takes us on a tour of the world six years on from where he left off. This is a film which pulls no punches and if you’re used to watching Eastenders as your alleyway into London’s rough gritty realism this will literally make you wince.
There is no such thing as a childhood around these parts – the urban warfare means learn to duck and hit back quickly. Santa does exist, it’s just that he steals your presents and smells of whiskey. Adulthood is just as devoid of magic. Sam encounters trouble on every corner and you’re left with that sense of tension well after the credits roll.
No-one thought Gary Oldman would do a sequel to Nil-By-Mouth – but these seem to be the kind of films which would benefit from a little more exploration – gruesome, difficult to pigeon-hole characters brought to life by Britain’s best actors and actresses. Kidulthood was the same – dealing with difficult issues and forcing us to take a good look at London’s grottier side of life.
The sequel will excite and repel in equal measures and although some scenes seem hurried and flat, others fizz with energy and menace and if half of what is depicted is true, I’m selling my properties in West London.
