Directed By Mo Ali
Starring Kedar Williams-Stirling, Ashley “Bashy” Thomas, Adam Deacon and Kaya Scodelario
In 2015, the economy has bottomed out and crime rates have sky-rocketed to the point where the government has simply sealed the upper classes away in “safe zones” and left the gangs to their own devices. In a world where gang violence reigns supreme and non-existent supplies mean food (or “munchies”, in Shank’s street slang dialect) is the city’s most valuable commodity, speedy young turk Junior (Kedar Williams-Stirling) and his crew ‘The Paper Chaserz’ skirt under the radar, struggling to make ends meat without meeting the end of a rusty shiv. As a relatively peaceful gang who shirk murderous violence, they steal from food delivery trucks, trading their edible gains for money. Like Aladdin, then, only ditching the magic carpet for random stabbings and gang slang (though strangely retaining a musical dance number or two). When Junior’s brother and The Paper Chaserz’ leader Rager (Ashley “Bashy” Thomas) is murdered, the gang quickly set off on a cross-city quest for vengeance.
Opening with an exhilarating foot chase through gang-ruled estates, Shank jumps out of the gate with a gripping, lively energy, overlayed with a wealth of dynamic camerawork and a fantastic grime soundtrack. Director Mo Ali and writer Paul Van Carter have a blast crafting their London dystopia, filled with fun touches like a hijacked double-decker Routemaster bus serving as a mobile HQ for girl gang The Slaughter Girlz or the emergence of a Kentucky Fried Pigeon outlet, and the result is a refreshing change of pace from the glut of interchangeable Brit social realism gang films lately. Without a slow moment, Shank is a light, fun film with a healthy dose of personality and an overwhelming abundance of gritty style and youthful energy, it’s just a shame that Ali’s directorial toolset isn’t utilised with a little more focus.
Unfortunately, Shank, with its visually distinctive, creatively-monikered gangs, wants desperately to be The Warriors, but sorely lacks the lean, focused momentum of Walter Hill’s classic. Ali and Van Carter struggle to find much for their characters to do, padding the narrative when they should be propelling it forward, resulting in a repetitive series of mumbling monologues, extended musical interludes and encounters with gangs that are entirely without incident or much purpose. Though director Mo Ali’s music video background provides for a wealth of baked-in visual flair, without focus or restraint for his indulgent impulses, that MTV mentality veers off into meandering, poorly-realised asides, including a computer-generated BMX chase scene and a redundant, laughable animated dream sequence, while the final brawl is an incoherent mess of hyperactive editing and jittery camerawork.
Shank is never boring, but it’s never as potent, explosive or incisive as it wants to be either. The heavy-handed moralising feels woefully out of place as the rest of the film revels in stylized violence and video game aesthetics, but when it’s not swamped with melodrama there’s a wealth of energetic entertainment to be had. As a lighter, more fun and ambitious counterpoint to the well-trodden grimy Brit cinema estates of the Kidulthood franchise, Shank does well to try something slightly different, but a hyperactive lack of directorial focus means The Baseball Furies won’t be shaking in their cleats anytime soon.
On the DVD:
The disc kindly sent along for review was a promotional screener without extras, so I can’t properly assess the quality of the final release. Hopefully we’ll be able to bring you a more comprehensive review of the Blu-ray/DVD extras and audio-visual quality closer to the retail release.
The DVD will apparently come with a hefty helping of extras, including a couple of behind-the-scenes/’Making Of’ features, a ‘Dodgergate Scandal’ (a short faux-documentary about actor Michael Socha’s backstage blow-up over a missing Jammie Dodger biscuit), cast and crew interviews, a segment on the film’s premiere, a music video for ‘When The Sky Falls’ with its own behind-the-scenes piece, a trailer and a photo gallery.
Rating:
Shank is available to buy on DVD and Blu-ray in the UK on 26th July 2010.
