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Plague, The
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| Year: |
2004
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Director: |
Greg Hall
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| Stars: |
Samuel Anoyke, Brett Harris, David Bonnick Junior, Nur Alam Rahman, Che Grant, Jeetandra Lathigra, Diana Walker, Jackson Wright, Skinnyman, DJ Flip
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| Genre: |
Drama |
| Rating: |
  6 (from 1 vote) |
| Review: |
It's just another day for four friends on an inner city London estate, but first they have to greet the morning before they get together. Some are better risers than others, and one, Ravi (Nur Alam Rahman) has got himself involved in an unwise criminal activity when he helps with taking money from a stolen credit card. This incident will come back to haunt him, but today all he is pleased about is the folding money in his pocket, and he goes off to find his friends. They are assembling at the home of Matt (Brett Harris), but soon the police stop the three of them to search them for drugs; they may protest, but they're resigned to this as part of life. There's going to be a party later on, though for now it's selling drugs that concerns them as they go round to the local dealer's home, which for one of them will prove fateful...
The story of The Plague is in some ways more inspiring than the film itself, as it was made by writer and director Greg Hall on a tiny budget with both actors and amateurs in front of the camera. It all went to prove that throwing heaps of cash at a production doesn't necessarily point to the best results, as this film didn't really need it to succeed, looking authentic with its shot on location appearance. It was noticed, legend has it, by director Mike Leigh, and it's obvious why it attracted his attention and praise with its improvisational, slice of life feel. After a few festival dates where it went down very well, it finally received a cinema release two years after its completion, and more plaudits for its gritty and genuine quality.
So how does it play? It tends to meander, but as the storyline is priding itself on reality, this isn't a problem. In fact, the scenes where the friends sit around talking are the best sequences in the film, and it's almost a pity they decided to include a more serious plot to bring the weekend's events to a tragic climax. All the actors acquit themselves with skill, and you won't be able to guess which are the professionals and which are not, with a camaraderie between the four leads that is never less than convincing. There is humour, thankfully, so it isn't all a wallow in inner city strife, and interesting tensions, the one with the police being the most clichéd, but necessary, yet with, for example, Ravi observing Ramadan but having no qualms in being drawn into petty crime, as one of many ironies. Overall, I would have preferred The Plague to make up its mind between being a crime drama or an easygoing snapshot of early 21st Century Britain, but for what the film has achieved, it's undeniably impressive.
[The Wysiwyg DVD has a wealth of special features including an audio commentary with the filmmakers, deleted scenes, outtakes, rehearsal footage, a bonus short film, trailer and more.]
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| Reviewer: |
Graeme Clark
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