baradanikto ... Make another one !This is a masterpiece !If you just watch it once, then you don't get it. Gets better every time I watch it.A lot of hard work has gone in to making this movie, and it shows.10/10 without any question.Barada.

jerome willner Aaron bed-sits alone. Dressed in "street uniform" baseball cap, trainers and black outfit with a "Hoodie" top, he smokes a roll-up. Un-blinking,he watches social commentary on TV. A range of "street people" express their views on "The social problem".As a 'youth worker' states emphatically "It is a definite bonus to have a strong family background ...", Aaron looks devastated and gulps. We are left in no doubt, he is from a broken home, he's been in care and though he is alert and aspirational, he's in a dark place right now.The voice of the Writer-Director (Ben Drew), narrates; warning us to put our seat-belts on. His words become a Rap Poem, blending smoothly into his performance of "I Am the Narrator". A drum, snare, and bass track with a hook line that samples "Aquarium" from The Carnival of the Animals by Camille Saint-Saëns; placing your nerves firmly on edge with it's intensity and eeriness.Getting straight down to business, this opener plays to scenes of full-on drug dealing and drug using activities, with panoramic vulture's eye views of the urban underworld, all punters, prostitutes, and gangsters.Aaron is dealing outside a pub with his friend Ed, who serves a punter some drugs. As soon as his client's out of earshot, Ed starts to insult him in a way that immediately confirms his 'scumbag' credentials. What is Aaron doing with this idiot? In hopeless cycles of fear, flight, and attack; the characters connect and collectively manifest the poisonous web that is their ghetto-hood.With it's killer soundtrack, razor-blade-sharp eye for plot-detail, visual gags, and a speed-dial connection to " Hood-life circa 2012"; watching Ill Manors is sometimes surprising, sometimes painful; but never dull.On this roller coaster ride of losses and gains, everyone rides and no one is clean; but the ticket to redemption can sometimes be bought for a price, paid in deeds or paid in blood.What this movie lacks in perspective depth, it more than makes up for with a style and pace, that leave many movie releases of 2012 standing.Contemporary Street vibes and idioms are vividly captured, and projected with an authentic immediate bleakness.While possibly falling 'only-just' short of being a "classic"; Ben Drew's directorial film debut is an amazingly confident foray into the 'social-realism movie' arena.His talents as an established singer songwriter serve him well, and add a refreshing twist to this well-trodden genre.Originally written & published ... by me - Jerome Willner (2012 10 11 - 20:20Hrs)

Jonathon Natsis The debut feature from Ben Drew (better known as rapper Plan B) makes some interesting inroads as a gritty gangster film bent on uncovering the many flaws of David Cameron's broken Britain. But, at an ill-advised two-hour plus runtime and an ill-managed script that very quickly degenerates into a nonsensical shamble of f-bombs, c-bombs, 'innits' and 'bruvvas', Ill Manors looks more like an unassuming eight-year-old with a painted gold chain and counterfeit snapback: he thinks he's tough, but he's the only one.The effort made to blend the six stories surrounding the film's doomed night crawlers – four drug dealers and a pair of prostitutes – is a respectable one. However, lost in the apparent coolness of overlapping one twisted life with another is the expectation that these stories will eventually lead to something – which they don't. There is still some to like about Drew's ambling adventure, though. Ahmed is believable as a conflicted soul trying to help, and each character is introduced via an original rap song sung by the director. But because the basics of filmmaking deflate these otherwise creative moments, one gets the impression the whole project would've worked better as a storytelling album (a la Pink Floyd's The Wall or Kanye's College Dropout), not a feature film.*There's nothing I love more than a bit of feedback, good or bad. So drop me a line on jnatsis@iprimus.com.au and let me know what you thought of my review. If you're looking for a writer for your movie website or other publication, I'd also love to hear from you.*

MattyGibbs I must admit that 45 minutes in I wanted to switch this off. It was almost unbearably depressing and grim, however I am glad I stuck with it through to the end. I don't know if this depicts normal life in inner city London or not but from news reports I wouldn't imagine it was million miles away. The film paints a bleak picture of people stuck in an almost lose lose situation although of course ultimately you shape your own destiny in life. For a directorial debut this is amazingly assured. I have not a fan of Plan B as it's not really my music taste but he is obviously a hugely talented guy. The film follows various people and their stories throughout the film and these gradually intertwine. The fact that all the stories are interesting as well is also impressive as you rarely get this in movies that mingle multiple stories. The film boasts a largely unknown cast which makes the almost uniformly excellent performances all the more staggering. There is little of the usual cockney wide boy caricature to be seen here. I felt the performances of Riz Ahmed and Anouska Mond were particularly good. The film in many ways reminded me of Trainspotting but with an even darker edge and the film is almost on a par with that one. This is a brutal and tough film to watch but one which really pays off with a great ending. This by word of mouth will end up being a cult classic of that i'm pretty sure.