Attack the Block (2011)

Artwork for Cinema Release of Film

I expected very little from this film, but the trailer looked great, and I settled for at the very least getting some enjoyment out of this film.  That coupled with the fact that my wife adores horrible B films and a rainy Saturday in Jersey City; and I was half forced to watch this.

I was sorely wrong:  I ended up loving the film.  It was funny, witty, not cartoonish, a bit scary, and very well shot.

 As a social criticism of poverty and the characters it creates, it stands above many other films in its genre.  That criticism is subtle and in your face at the same time, and never two dimensional.  It manages to strike the characters in the film with the same 'Aha!' moment as it does the audience, and never truly feels forced.

As with many other films there is a striking difference between those shots that are utilitarian and those that are artistic or symbolic, but since I expected nothing from the film, they are the equivalent of discovering small pearls in the sand when you dig your toes in.

I will be buying this film for my collection in the future, and suggest you do the same before Hollywood buys this and remakes it in the US.

Sadly, there isn't the same amount of ghetto militarism in the US as there is in Europe, and the aftertaste would be a bit bitter and racist at the same time.

Au revoir!