Brit Sci-Fi movie ATTACK THE BLOCK has been occupying much of THN’s time and thought lately – earlier this week we attended the premiere and chatted with the films director Joe Cornish and some of its cast (check out the pics and video), which got us salivating with anticipation. Well last night our cinematic palette was satisfied with an advanced screening. First thoughts? Fan-bloody-tastic!
The films tag line really says it all ‘Inner City versus Outer Space’ and its narrative is as brilliantly simple and efficient as this pitch; some no good hoodlums are enjoying an evening of dastardly violent crime when their felonious antics are interrupted by an alien crash landing – no strangers to danger the youths quickly dispatch this vicious meanie, but hold your horses hoodies – this mean mother is not alone! The ensuing film is an exciting blend of suspense, action, laughs and a smattering of gore for good measure, as the gang defend their tower block and try to defeat the aliens.
First off the film looks and feels amazing, it’s a flawless blend of the urban landscape and the filmic conventions of the genre and really does force the viewer to see the sci-fi in everything. Cornish’s unique vision effortlessly transforms underground parking lots into space hangers, maps into schematics, whilst the estates walkways and stairwells take on the attributes of the innards of the Death Star. Even Nick Frost’s character evokes a kind of ghetto Darth Vader (with a leatherette track suit and bum bag – nice!). Thanks to precision lighting and great camera work the exterior of the tower block looks like an amalgam of space stations from collective movie history. Each time the iconic block appears on screen its got the breath taking impact of an intergalactic megalith. An excellent atmospheric soundtrack by Basement Jaxx complements the action as the story moves through the flickering fluorescent-lit hallways of the block. ATB manages to evoke the feel of classic sci-fi even when transposing it to a completely new environment and makes you wonder how you’ve never seen the similarities before!
The movie’s plot is punchy and never drops past fun and fast paced – much of its success is due to the naturalistic scripting and the young (and largely unknown) cast’s great performances, which are both witty and believable. John Boyega who plays Moses; the broody leader of the gang, does a precision job of portraying the hard-man whilst illustrating the hardships of his given social circumstance and environment. What is also refreshing about the script and plot of this film is the characters’ understanding of their predicament – it’s a welcome change to have the protagonists grasping the situation straight off the bat (its so frustrating in movies when characters have been attacked, by say a werewolf, and all the way through the film are still screaming ‘What the hell was that thing’? it’s a fucking werewolf – deal with it ). Instead the gang immediately know its an alien and they react, making Corporal Hicks and Hudson look like a couple of pant pissing babies, as they butch-up and get busy with the task at hand – alien killing.
“I love low budget, high-concept film. I like directors who bite off more than they can chew”. Joe Cornish
Its fair to say that the aliens themselves are no Giger Xenomorph and are infact quite basic in appearance. As Cornish put it “They’re a mix of the wolf at the start of 300 and my hairy black cats Comfy and Macy”. There is however a fantastic evolutionary justification to their look that reveals itself towards the end of the film and makes perfect sense. There are some non-believers out there who will tear them down as being unimaginative and not very scary – but it’s a case of substance over style and like the best movie monsters Cornish doesn’t reveal too much too soon and teases with quick glimpses of these prowling shadow dwelling beasties until far later in the game.
Joe Cornish is himself a life long resident of South London and felt a great deal pride and responsibility bringing the film to the screen. The concept actually came from his own experience of being mugged and the odd stereotypical nature of the occurrence – “It felt like we we’re both [Joe and the mugger] acting out the parts in a pantomime”. As such he wanted to take a closer look at the lives of urban youngsters to frequently and flippantly tagged as ‘hoodies’ or ‘Chavs’ by The Daily Mail and the likes. As such the film has a pretty strong moral message for those on all sides of the class divide and humanises the hoodie; teaching them to see the consequences of their action whilst asking the toffee noses to see beyond the exterior to the lives and situations of young Londoners – a little preachy perhaps but it does give the film a few moments of genuine poignancy and heart. Cornish furthers this idea by making the gang the most naturalistic characters as everyone else is an extreme caricature including Luke Treadaway’s comical middleclass kid ‘Brewis’ and Jumayn Hunter’s gangsta wannabe High Hatz.
ATTACK THE BLOCK totally draws the viewer in with a whole gamete of emotion and cinematic knowledge. Like all great films there is nothing overt or clunky plot-wise, it’s a film that takes place in the moment for both characters and audience alike so your never thinking ahead to anything that might be obvious or cliché (although to be honest there really isn’t). With a creative team of Cornish and producer Edgar Wright, both no stranger to homage and parody, the film is free from any overt references – rather its reminiscent of films, reminding us of Warriors, Critters, Assault on Precinct 13, E.T. without ever copying them.
This is a clever, subtle and original movie that does what great cinema should – tell a great story with thrills and spills along the way. Not only that but it also maintains a suitable level of pulp-ishness that makes it light and entertaining but still has you thinking about it’s nifty concepts the next day.
Precision popcorn cinema, sure to be a global (cult or otherwise) hit and an astounding start to Joe Cornish’s movie making career – Well done that man!
