Directed by:
Michael Caton-JonesScreenplay:
Nick MoorcroftCinematography:
Denis CrossanComposer:
Tom LindenCast:
Ian Hart, Shirley Henderson, Steven Mackintosh, Shaun Parkes, Billy Bragg, Letitia Wright, Kemal Sylvester, Mark Haldor, Victoria Alcock, Miroslav Zaruba (more)Plots(1)
Veteran filmmaker Michael Caton-Jones directs this searing and moving portrait of a pair of disenfranchised teen girls struggling to survive in 2011 north London, just as violent race riots erupt in their neighbourhood. Parentless and living under the protection of the state in a home for troubled orphans, Jamie and Leanne are streetwise and world-weary beyond their years. The presence of Kate (Shirley Henderson), a committed social worker eager to take on the challenge presented by Alpha House, where the two girls and a host of other young teens live, creates a dynamic and possibly combustible situation. Jamie (Letitia Wright) and Leanne (Isabella Laughland) snarl and sneer at the world. They are tough, no-nonsense kids who trust no one. In the first shots of the film we see them rage through the streets looting stores as the riots unleash mayhem. But they're caught off-guard by the well-intentioned newbie social worker who has just given up a job as a university lecturer to try and reform the youths whose actions have led to a personal tragedy of her own. Kate is patient and relentless, and sees the potential good in the kids. It turns out that Jamie has a musical talent that has lain dormant for lack of encouragement. Leanne is a much tougher nut to crack. Slowly, but surely, Kate sets out to make her mark, bringing out the best, and sometimes the worst, in these distressed teens. (Toronto International Film Festival)
(more)Cast
Ian Hart
UK
Best movies:
Enemy of the State (1998)
Finding Neverland (2004)
Vinyl (2016) (series)
Shirley Henderson
UK
Best movies:
Trainspotting (1996)
The Way We Live Now (2001) (series)
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005)
Steven Mackintosh
UK
Best movies:
House of America (1997)
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998)
Prime Suspect 5: Errors of Judgment (1996) (TV movie)
Shaun Parkes
UK
Best movies:
Human Traffic (1999)
Small Axe (2020) (series)
Inspector Lynley Mysteries: Know Thine Enemy (2007) (TV movie)
Billy Bragg
UK
Letitia Wright
Guyana
Best movies:
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Ready Player One (2018)
Kemal Sylvester
Best movies:
Sherlock (2010) (series)
Inspector George Gently (2007) (series)
Hunter (2009) (TV movie)
Mark Haldor
UK
Best movies:
King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017)
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)
Fast & Furious 6 (2013)
Victoria Alcock
UK
Best movies:
Endeavour (2012) (series)
Jellyfish (2018)
Agatha Christie's Poirot (1989) (series)
Miroslav Zaruba
Best movies:
The Hollow Crown (2012) (series)
Kingsman: The Secret Service (2014)
The Theory of Everything (2014)
Attila G. Kerekes
Best movies:
The Hollow Crown (2012) (series)
Two Is a Family (2016)
Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015)
Martin Turner
Hong Kong
Best movies:
Agatha Christie's Poirot (1989) (series)
Foyle's War (2002) (series)
Maigret (2016) (series)
Caroline O'Neill
UK
Best movies:
Endeavour (2012) (series)
Agatha Christie's Poirot (1989) (series)
Inspector George Gently (2007) (series)
Isabella Laughland
Best movies:
The Hollow Crown (2012) (series)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)
Now Is Good (2012)
Diana Payan
South Africa
Best movies:
Perfect Strangers (2001) (series)
The Scarlet Pimpernel (1999) (series)
Dalziel and Pascoe (1996) (series)
Anthony Milton
Best movies:
Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation (2015)
Fury (2014)
Kingsman: The Golden Circle (2017)
George Somner
UK
Best movies:
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (2023)
Crawl (2019)
Matthew Steer
UK
Best movies:
Hamlet (2015) (theatrical recording)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (2010)
Summerhill (2008) (TV movie)
Jack McMullen
Best movies:
Le Mans '66 (2019)
Maigret (2016) (series)
The Souvenir: Part II (2021)