Somers Town (2008)

PaulaWestwood from Ashton-Under-Lyne [Highly rated reviewer] , 26/08/2008

Put director Shane Meadows and superb young actor Thomas Turgoose together and you can be forgiven for immediately thinking.. Brilliant... 'This England' all over again, a must see. Unfortunalely you may be slightly dissapointed. This new output covers a very current social trend (European Immigration) along with an age old situation (runaway teens in London), and is painted brilliantly in black and white, with superb performances throughout. The only problem is, there is a distinct lack of actual solid content and what there is seems to be a little old hat. Add to that a very abrupt and slightly implausible endpiece and despite the craft of the film, it just does not really satisfy, entertain or educate in the way we expected it to, worth a watch but only if you enjoy a director and cast who can craft a fine portrait on film rather than a whole story.

  6 out of 6 people found this review helpful

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JoeL from Leeds [Highly rated reviewer] , 11/09/2008

The combination of Shane Meadows and Thomas Turgoose again proves to be an absolute triumph. Turgoose is one of Britain's brightest young actors and his performance in Somers Town is superb.

Somers Town is much less intense than Meadows' last two films (Dean Man's Shoes and This Is England) and is the story of a friendship between two boys who are both at isolated and lonely periods of their lives. The film is exceedingly funny as Turgoose demonstrates what a competent comedy actor he can be when he is in Shane's hands. The plot is very simple but it does not need to be complicated as the whole film's focus is simply upon the growth of a friendship.

It is good to see that Shane Meadows can produce a film which, despite having parts of it which are relatively bleak, ultimately leaves you feeling good on the inside. I believe a sign of a good director is one who is not afraid to change and even though there are aspects of Somers Town that are similar to Shane's other films, it is all together a lot more light hearted and less intense.

I recommend this film to any Shane Meadows fan because (as always) he captures interaction between people so beautifully.

  6 out of 6 people found this review helpful

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Bluesman from Derbys , 26/09/2008

A new Shaun Meadows movie is always something to look forward to, especially after Dead Mans Shoes and of course This is England. But alas Somers Town leaves you dis-appointed. Despite being nicely filmed and well acted, it just rumbles along and never really grabs your attention. The main character remains two dimensional throughout the film with very little insight to why he has runaway in the first place.

Lets hope this was a one off clich for Mr.Meadows

  1 out of 1 person found this review helpful

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PaulaWestwood from Ashton-Under-Lyne [Highly rated reviewer] , 26/08/2008

Put director Shane Meadows and superb young actor Thomas Turgoose together and you can be forgiven for immediately thinking.. Brilliant... 'This England' all over again, a must see. Unfortunalely you may be slightly dissapointed. This new output covers a very current social trend (European Immigration) along with an age old situation (runaway teens in London), and is painted brilliantly in black and white, with superb performances throughout. The only problem is, there is a distinct lack of actual solid content and what there is seems to be a little old hat. Add to that a very abrupt and slightly implausible endpiece and despite the craft of the film, it just does not really satisfy, entertain or educate in the way we expected it to, worth a watch but only if you enjoy a director and cast who can craft a fine portrait on film rather than a whole story.

  6 out of 6 people found this review helpful

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Bluesman from Derbys , 26/09/2008

A new Shaun Meadows movie is always something to look forward to, especially after Dead Mans Shoes and of course This is England. But alas Somers Town leaves you dis-appointed. Despite being nicely filmed and well acted, it just rumbles along and never really grabs your attention. The main character remains two dimensional throughout the film with very little insight to why he has runaway in the first place.

Lets hope this was a one off clich for Mr.Meadows

  1 out of 1 person found this review helpful

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