“Tommo: You promised you wouldn’t laugh
Marek: I’m sorry, you look great
Tommo: Well I think I look like a female golfer”
With a beautiful acoustic soundtrack by Gavin Clarke, and far from the violence of This is England, yet keeping up with the rawness of cityscape Brit stories, director Shane Meadows takes us on a cocktail journey of cultural integration, comedy and sadness.
Meadows protégé Thomas Turgoose arrives in London as Tommo, a Nottingham boy just released from social care with dreams of the big city. He quickly gets himself into trouble when he encounters three local hoodies. But as soon as he meets lonesome Polish immigrant Marek, played by Warsaw youth shinning newcomer Piotr Jagiello in a café place near the station, the story takes on a comical light feel. They get into the good graces of local Del Boy Graham, played by Perry Benson (This is England ) who pays the kids pennies for their hard work. And start a platonic love relationship with French beauty Elisa Lasowski (Eastern Promises), who plays Maria, the café waitress.
In the style of Meadows’ films, the dreamy mood doesn’t last long. When Marek’s father (Polish TV actor Ireneusz Czop) who works in the building of the new St Pancreas International station discovers Tommo, it all takes a dramatic turn, diving into some of the cultural integration difficulties facing immigrants. But since this is a story commissioned by EuroStar to mark the building of London International St Pancreas, it doesn’t stay on such a sad note for long.
Mainly shot in black and white and feeling a bit like a slightly extended short, the film ends in a light touristic colourful mode. It’s definitely worth the trip to cinema, even if for those who really enjoyed This is England it will feel a bit light hearted. Once more Meadows proves himself a great director, showing that he doesn’t need extreme violent scenes to cause an effect on his audiences.
