Change Your Image
cutewildstyle
Reviews
The Undertaker (2023)
Solid British noir thriller with a dreamlike quality
Beautifully art designed and chocful of British character actors that you've seen in all kinds of things for years, The Undertaker is a bit of a cult treat for lovers of unusual British films. Paul McGann heads up a cast that could have been plucked out of an industrial town from the mid 20th century, replete with starched collars and drizzled raincoats. Colour and joy have seemingly been bleached from the lives of these stoic post-war Englanders. You can almost smell the carbolic. The plot follows Arthur (McGann), a seemingly mild mannered undertaker operating a modest business somewhere in the north of England in the early 1960s. After he is approached by Finlay (Roger Barclay), a local gangster, he is coerced into disposing of a mounting number of cadavers created by Finlay's gang, as they launch a power grab. Arthur is faced with the dawning reality that when the music stops, he may well be the last man who literally knows where the bodies are buried. As Kelly (Sean Gilder), the detective investigating the case puts to him "Who's going to bury you?' Arthur's journey is one of complacency, rather than greed. He seeks the easier, softer way but in doing so, places himself and others in serious peril. The vampish Vic (Tara Fitzgerald) and Finlay's accountant Pullman (Bob Cryer) recognise this, but their warnings may not arrive in time to save Arthur from a fate that could be considered far worse than death. The Undertaker is an unusual little film for the movie watcher who doesn't shy away from the quirky. Its beautifully crafted sets and overall design are somewhat reminiscent of Caro and Jeunet's 1991 classic 'Delicatessen', having a slightly other worldly quality about them. Great performances throughout and worth watching for the late, great Murray Melvin's cameo performance alone (he plays Lenny, Arthur's business partner.) A solid 8/10.
Bullet Boy (2004)
A vital social document which is not for the average film buff
This film will be a painful mirroring of every day life for anyone living in one of London's gun infested boroughs. It portrays the difficulty faced by young black men who lack male authority figures and are brought up in a culture of violence driven kudos and the economic reality of having no education and very little hope. It also shows the pain of a family, caught up in a situation that they don't understand and can't control.
It succeeds in painting the truly unglamourous picture of life on an east London housing estate, where to lose face could mean death.
Ashley Walters is superb as the fresh out of jail Ricky. He embodies the chaotic nature of a young man, struggling to accept authority, wrestling with his notion of what is right and gaining the respect of his peers. All this in the context of being a young offender, facing a life of menial labour and rejection, by a society that he barely belongs to.
The script is very economical and realistic and it has been shot in a hand-held, docudrama style, which lends itself perfectly to the subject matter.
I would caution anyone looking for an entertaining movie about London gangsters or punchy one liners. This film does nothing to glamorise gun culture in London. It doesn't dilute it's grimness with humour or irrelevant subplots and it doesn't shy away from showing some of the more appalling aspects of modern gang culture.
It has had accusations of stereotypical characters and situations levelled at it, but speaking as somebody who has grown up surrounded by guns and drug crime, I can tell you reliably that these characters exist, as do the situations that occur in the film. It isn't funny, there are no jokes and everyday life really is a struggle for survival.
If anything, the filmmakers have made a concession to the viewer and resisted showing the full horror of what can happen to you if you diss somebody publicly.
This film has more importance as a historical document than a piece of aesthetic beauty. If you want more posturing and drama you might prefer 'Kidulthood' but for the sheer reality factor, you can't go wrong with 'Bullet Boy'.
Cutewildstyle, Peckham, London 2008