Adulthood
Tuesday, 24 Jun 2008 12:17
Noel Clarke wrote, directed and stars in Adulthood
Directed by Noel Clarke, out now in cinemas, starring Noel Clarke, Adam Deacon, Scarlett Alice Johnson, Jacob Anderson, Ben Drew, 99 mins.
In a nutshell...
"When the world hates you, hate it back."
What's it all about?
Six years on from the aftermath of Kidulthood, Sam Peel (Noel Clarke) is released from prison after serving his time for beating his rival Trife to death with a baseball bat. During the next 24 hours of Sam's departure from prison, he realises he has a price on his head and become the target of revenge attacks coordinated by his victim's friends. In the meantime, Sam develops a close friendship with Lexie (Scarlett Alice Johnson) the cousin of his ex girlfriend, who attempts to help him end the war with Trife's pals. At the same time, Trife's best friend Jay (Adam Deacon) has become a violent street gangster and is less understanding of Sam's ambition to put the past behind him.
Who's in it?
Noel Clarke is probably best known to the TV-watching public as Mickey Smith in Doctor Who and has directed, written and starred in this courageous follow-up to Kidulthood.
Adulthood consists of mainly the same cast to its predecessor but does include a few new faces, such as Scarlett Alice Johnson who has previously been seen in Eastenders and also a brief cameo from Danny Dyer who sticks to his usual hard man act, yet nevertheless still manages to treat the ladies in playing the protective boyfriend role.
Some of the supporting casts are better than others, particularly when it comes to Adam Deacon, the foul-mouthed career criminal whose aggressive tone and face full of hate produces a great thug routine. Conversely, Scarlett Alice Johnson fails miserably in painting a picture of a lonesome girl who just wants to be loved instead demonstrating a girl who frequently modifies her accent depending on who she is conversing with. Another head-shaking moment emerges when the ex-EastEnder is so desperate for company that she invites murderer Sam into her home the first day she meets him!
As an example...
"Blood I will spark your gal differently." - Jay
"I've never felt more like a kid in my whole life." - Lexie
Likelihood of a trip to the Oscars
Noel Clarke ought to keep a shield next to his bed side with the amount of awards that should be aimed at this talented actor, writer and director especially in 2008. Watch this space...
What the others say
"Adulthood is a worthy and engaging sequel to the first film that marks Noel Clarke out as a talent to watch. Recommended." – ViewLondon
"It's a film with its target audience – teenage boys and the youngest of men – firmly in mind and we're never far from a rapid edit, a loud tune or a fight." – Dave Calhoun, Time Out
So is it any good?
As with Kiddulthood which was also written by Clarke, Adulthood's script incorporates a high level of slang and incomprehensible dialogue that does in fact have its benefits in making Adulthood feel genuine and organic.
On the contrary the acting in this film can come across a bit Grange Hill in parts and sometimes the nonsensical lingo can raise an eyebrow or two but it's the main front liners Clarke and Deacon who give this film the real substance.
This film will pull on the heartstrings of many people and indeed make you question the reality this film is based on. Adulthood is deep and energetic without glamorising violence instead showing the repercussions of violent behaviour in the most radical ways possible. It is full of society-hating youths that have no morals and distorted views of fun which consist of robbing, stabbing and making themselves feel powerful by seeing others weak. Even the posters on the wall give you an indication of the mottos these tear-aways live by: "When the world hates you, hate it back."
Adulthood is filmed among the rough estates of West London, it provides a great depiction of the underworld and you don't even have to be 'down with the kids' to enjoy it. Although it is not a film for the delicate, with frequent sequences of shocking imagery, you don't even need to wait ten minutes for a stabbing, a shooting, a carjacking and even a few explicit sex scenes.
What's most impressive about Adulthood is the way in which it explores the results of Kidulthood and in doing so it productively turns the baddy of the first film into the hero of the second. The fact that we are actually rooting for Sam even after the terrible crime he committed is pure evidence of the strength and quality in Noel Clarke's marvellous writing, direction and performance.
Adulthood has definitely grown up.
8.5/10
Natalie Gurvitz
Agree with this review? Have a different opinion? Let us know your thoughts (without
being too abusive to our poor reviewers please) and we'll post the best ones on
the site.