IslandGuru Who payed the critics

Maidexpl Entertaining from beginning to end, it maintains the spirit of the franchise while establishing it's own seal with a fun cast

Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Griff Lees Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

GUENOT PHILIPPE I guess the British film industry will never get tired of the Essex Boys affair, or I would say killing, that occurred in 1995, a sort of mini Saint Valentine massacre made in UK. I have never been informed of this killing, except through those movies never released in France. But I am sure that's at least the sixth film speaking of this affair. I am sure they will make films about it fifty years from now. There were not so many movies about the Great Train Robbery which took place in August 1963. I like crime or gangster flicks from over the Channel, although they seem all alike. You have two kinds, the SNATCH kind and the RISE OF THE FOOT SOLDIER one. I have seen dozens of those features, and I prefer the second genre, more brutal and realistic with also less humor. One more thing, about the scene where the young hood is killed with a riot gun in the end; when you get killed with this kind of rifle, your body jumps to the rear, it doesn't stand still...Caliber 12 is not 9mm...

Jnoirnoir1032 How many times will low budget tales about these Essex lads need to be told. The film made no effort to show anything other than the tough guy 'gangster' side of Tucker or Tate. They were thoroughly unlikeable, and whilst Hassan gives a decent performance, I still couldn't care less about the fate of his gobby bully. Stone, meanwhile fares less well. Not sure what this guys background is, but he's not a very convincing tough guy. I think he has a slight speech impediment which may have been a character choice, but it didn't seem right for the part. I didn't believe him at all, and he only really seems to have one emotion. Angry swearing. The direction is competent without ever being very imaginative, and the film does seem to have been put together quite well, zipping along at a good old pace. It's not a terrible film, it's just not really very interesting. It's been done better, many times, before. There is a very clear market for these films, and I guess whilst this obsession with cockney geezers remains we can expect more offerings like this one. Shame.

beatleblack NOT as good as ROTFS! However... If you are interested in the now notorious story of the so-called Essex Boys, you will want to see this for completist reasons.This film presents the relationship between Mickey Steele & Pat Tate/Tony Tucker with the ultimate build-up to the Range Rover killing in a way that ROTFS missed. That's because the narrative comes from the perspective of the 3rd member of Mickey's gang. This is a perspective which you can't help but doubt having watched Rise & which even this film admits with a post-script is a dubious account.Documentary evidence aside, two questions arise: do we have some more great anecdotal evidence of their out-of-control behaviour? And, is this anywhere near as good a film as Rise?Firstly, yes AND no. Despite the lack of Craig Fairbass there are moments showing Pat's traits which are memorable but NOTHING like the Pizza scene. Secondly, yes AND no. This film felt like a more artistically professional job but left me feeling less satisfied and entertained than by the gloriously over-the-top Rise.

aaron-835-724528 Apparently this is movie is the truest depiction of the story of what happened to the 'Essex Boys' back in the mid nighties. It's definitely a lads action movie, but you'd expect that from the name.A slow start, as you got to grips with the characters and their relationships with each other, but it soon hots up, with plenty of action.From what i've heard and previously read it seems to be a fair account of what happened, and although it's a movie i'd like to think the portrayal didn't sensationalise what actually happened.Thoroughly enjoyed it, and would definitely watch again.