AutCuddly Great movie! If you want to be entertained and have a few good laughs, see this movie. The music is also very good,

Scotty Burke It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Phillida Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

marieinkpen If you enjoy being bored senseless, watch this film. There is so much wrong with it that it is difficult to know where to start, but the obvious place is the over-long completely unnecessary sex scene. I think it is very wrong to ask serious actors to perform such an explicit scene as this. Even it was plausible that she would try to set him up in this way, the scene does not need to be so long or explicit. (Unless of course the film was exploring her sexual frustration and needs, which it is not. She has already had a fumble in a car with a married man. So much for losing your husband - let's deprive another woman of hers). The whole premise for this type of revenge in the film is ridiculous anyway - would a woman who had lost her husband and daughter to this man's drug driving really be able to face having sex with him, never mind the intimacy of cunnilingus. I think not. And then suddenly she decides to drop charges - just like that. I think the police would have something to say about that.Another thing - an urn with the ashes of an adult male is surprisingly HEAVY - she carried the urns of her husband and daughter as if they were a loaf of bread. Also, i think this film needs subtitles - not for the thick Glaswegian accents but for the constant mumbling going on.

Rockwell_Cronenberg With Red Road, Andrea Arnold has followed in the footsteps of such masterpieces as The Conversation and Blow Out with her exploration of characters who live in a world of voyeurism. She doesn't quite reach the heights of those two films and as her narrative becomes more about the characters themselves it starts to become slightly less interesting, but the film still managed to make quite the impression on me. Her and the phenomenal Kate Dickie's study of this fragile, internally destroyed woman was very impressive and remarkably understated in their portrayal of her inner demons.I like that Arnold doesn't give us any answers right away and we're left in a state of mystery, having to trust that she'll bring things around and unveil the truth at some point. It was a strategy that definitely hooked me in and had me constantly guessing, but I found it to become less compelling the more the answers were revealed. Dickie's performance is heartbreaking and once again Arnold has created a fierce and determined female lead, who is set in her goals and won't let anyone stand in her way; I love seeing such a strong and layered female character.As much as I loved the character though, I have to admit that the most compelling moments in the film were those quiet ones where we just watched her watch the city. Arnold gave an excellent look into the world of someone whose job is to watch; as ours is during any film. I also have to give mention to the main sex scene, which is just...explosive, to say the least. As she did with her next film Fish Tank, Arnold has done something remarkably unique in film when it comes to sex and created a scene that is so many things at once; it's strangely erotic, majorly important for the characters and actually moves the plot forward. In a world with gratuitous nudity and sex for the sake of sex, Arnold has created two sex scenes in the last five years that break the mold and blew me away.

plectrum-1 It's one of those films that bombard you with vulgarity and never show any human relationships in a positive light. Most of the characters are damaged people and none of their activities are wholesome. The setting is as bleak as they can make it, although at least a fair bit of skill has gone into achieving this. It's misery-on-tap for those who need their filmic fix of purgatory. The CCTV angle of the plot is not developed very far, unfortunately. Instead we get to see the protagonist continue her surveillance work 'in the field' as she stalks a mysterious ex-con. While this generates a fair bit of tension, not a whole lot happens, and some of this stuff that does happen, you'll want to erase from your mind afterwards.The actors do well to carry such unappealing material, and the filming itself is memorable. However, the payoff at the end is simply not worth waiting for. Do yourself a favour and watch something more cheerful.

freemantle_uk One on the most famous cinematic movement to come out of Britain is Kitchen Sink Realism. These are films that focus on hard-hitting issues, normally focus on working-class communities and do not whole back on anything. This is a movement has been around since the 1960s, and many British directors have used this approach, such as Ken Loach, Mike Leigh and Shane Meadows. A new director is now joining their ranks: Andrea Arnold.Jackie (Kate Dickie) is a CCTV security operator in Glasgow; her job is simple, look and report any incidents. She is able to watch some familiar people like a man with his old bulldog, and a cleaner who dances to her MP3 whilst working. But Jackie is a lonely woman, her husband has died and she has pushed a lot of people away from her. One night when monitoring the Red Road Estate, one of the most deprived areas of Britain, Jackie sees someone who she never thought she would see again: Clyde Henderson (Tony Curran), the man who killed on husband. Jackie quickly becomes obsessed, following Clyde everywhere he goes with CCTV, calls his employer and even sees him going to a school and gives a schoolgirl money and make-up. Jackie even misses another schoolgirl getting stabbed. Jackie decides she needs to investigate further, goes to the Red Road Estate and starts spying on Clyde. She befriends Clyde's friends and attempts to get close to the man, plotting her revenge.Red Road is Arnold's first feature film, and she shows a lot of promise. She tells a slow burning story, letting it unfold gradually. She focuses on the characters, letting all of them develop naturally, showing that these are complex people with complex lives. She does not want to make a straight forward film and there is a complex morality throughout. This adds to the traditional of a more thoughtful type of independent film-making. Arnold keeps a realistic feel throughout, filming it like a document, using simple hand held cameras and obviously CCTV video tape. She shows the grim, tough area of Glasgow and how people's environment does affect them. She does not hold back on some of the more unpleasant subject matter and this film did deserve an 18 rating. Despite her skills as a director, Arnold's ability were not so good at this point. She has a very good premise for a thriller and she shows her passion to show this area of the world. But there are some plot holes that holds the film back from having a higher rating, like why don't people ask more about why Jackie is doing what she is doing, why she missed the stabbing and that should have been a warning to her. Wouldn't the police have asked questions and look into people's backgrounds? Arnold is obviously a talented woman and she just needed to tighten up her script to make her film better.Of course the acting is strong, the performance are more understated and realistic. The actors aim to be believable and complex, add to the character develop. Along with Arnold the performances are subtle; both vocally and physically.This is a worthy film for fans of independent cinema and kitchen sink realism. Arnold is a director to watch out for in the future.