Finally, a use for “hoodies” has arrived. Word of warning though, before I get down to typing something half way readable, when you leave this movie you will finish most of your sentences with Trust, Believe or Bruv!
Joe Cornish has written and directed one of this years better movies. A story that see’s a group of local hoodies / undesirables etc. team up with a girl they rob and mug, against an alien invasion. And it’s not New York or L.A. that the alien ass kicking happens, it’s a block of flats in south London. Things start out well enough for our illustrious hoodies as they rob a mobile phone and a few bits off Sam (Jodie Whittaker). In the process of doing so, something crash lands into a car next to scene of the crime. As Sam legs it, our hapless bad guys avail of the smashed car and stick their head into it, to see if any valuables are left in the wreckage. Enter our first little alien encounter. After a few face scratches, our hoodies tool up and head off and hunt down said alien and kill it. From there, things go from bad to worse as gorillia wolf muthafuckers of aliens start landing and hell comes to a South London apartment block. The hoodies take on the aliens in an attempt to save the world…or at least south London…bruv! Believe!!!
There is a frantic pace to Attack The Block. From the start, it never really lets up and thunders along with hoodies and aliens providing gore, comedy and rock solid entertainment from start to finish. It’s certainly a brave movie, in the sense that it’s entirely set at night, it’s in a block of flats and there’s not a recognisable landmark getting trampled on in sight. It’s very far removed from your stereotypical alien invasion movie and it was a big gamble, but man, does it work. Besides the pace, the relatively unknown cast (11 newcomers) are actually quite brilliant. They hard nose thugs that they are quickly transforms into mates that look out for one another and are bossed about by the parents. These subtle shifts in persona (Christ, we’re getting high brow now) are brilliantly executed and give the movie a really organic feel. As for the aliens themselves, they are quite bad ass and whilst they might be lacking in features, their LED style eyes and jaws will have you jumping out of your seat on a number of occasions. Special mention must go to the slo-mo grand finale which is one of the best scenes of the year.
Sure, it’s not full of explosions and gigantic CGi aliens, but when something is this good, who needs it! Attack The Block is laugh out loud funny at times, it’s tense, and like the area it’s portraying it’s gritty and real. By the time the credits roll, you will have being thoroughly entertained. Trust!!! Bruv!!
