Running time: 100 minutes
Starring: Noel Clarke, Danny Dyer, Scarlett Alice Johnson, Ben Drew
Rating 5 out of 10
Noel Clarke directs and stars in the sequel to his gritty 2005 film Kidulthood and once again we are back on the streets of London dealing with the sort of youth that the Daily Mail has a special place for (usually its front page). If you have little or no personal experience of the 'streets' then it's likely to be something of a perplexing affair.It's six years since the action of Kidulthood and since Sam (Clarke) was sent down for the stabbing incident that concluded the first film. Now he is just out of jail and looking to keep his head down and get back to his family.
The problem is that he is still something of a marked man after the events of the past and he is soon made aware that there are plenty of people out to get him. While he is able to deal with the odd isolated incident, he struggles with the likes of Hayden (Danny Dyer) who seem determined to continue the cycle of violence.
Set over a 24 hour period, we also catch up with some of the characters from the first film who are coming to terms with the grown-up world. There are some spirited performances, some kinetic (if not distracting) editing, and a script that seems to have each line end with the word 'blood' or 'bro'.
Fans will find it does exactly what they want but newcomers may be trickier to convince. A full-on soundtrack has tracks by Dizzee Rascal, Lethal Bizzle and Plan B.
Paul Hurley
