Kidulthood

I watched this film at quite an appropriate time, it was sort of a divine message from above kinda thing. It gave new meaning to the prophetic phrase “look to those who rank below you….rather than those above you”. There I was ready to break down after having what I thought was a totally crappy day, this film certainly put my priorities in order!

The film opens in a high school somewhere in the depths of London, you have the tart, the bully, therefore by default, the bullied, the “jack the lads” and then those guys who are a tad too old to be hanging around high schools but really have nothing better to do. However this quickly turns into your not so average high school drama, it is the shocking clarity of the opening events that sets the scene for the rest of the film. As the 90 minute film progresses the story line quickly descends deeper and deeper into the explicit world of sex, drugs and everything in-between that keeps the two tightly interlocked, and this is just one day! The director certainly doesn’t pussyfoot around “those” issues that are always implied yet never shown, thus resulting in a film which certainly isn’t for the light hearted and definitely plays the shock card. The film is smattered with a few comical scenes, (which are easy to forget in all those brow raising scenes), and is accompanied by a brilliant soundtrack which further portrays the characters inner struggles. HOWEVER although this film is brilliantly produced and directed I think it’s easy to guess what will happen in the end. It was quite graphic at times, without the need to be, as the film would have been better off without a few of the scenes in my opinion. Overall however I think it does its job of showing how SOME youths are today, albeit in a rather shove it down your throat kinda way…