Somers Town: Film review

Somers Town: Film review

Two teenagers, both newcomers to London. Marek who just moved to London with his Dad, and Tomo who is a runaway from Nottingham, who has nothing back there and is looking to forge a life out in London, but unfortunate events happen to him the first night he stays there and ends up meeting Marek, and form a unlikely friendship and chase and fight over a girl, Maria.

Shane Meadows who was hired to make a short film to promote the new euro star terminal in st. Pancreas.  One of the key themes in this short film is contrast; Tomo is very much an opposite version of Marek. Tomo is short and lazy and also cheeky, whilst Marek is tall, hardworking and very shy. Another theme is growing up, when  Marek met Tomo, he slowly changed, some bad things but some positive things, a example of a this is that he was coming out of his shell, and had a friend and he was having fun, but Tomo had a bad influence on him, when they stole laundry from the local launderette. Both of them were growing up over this period, they both loved the same girl, but they made sure it didn't get between them, saying that they both were still very childish, lying to impress a girl, and Tomo hiding under Marek’s  bed from Marek’s dad.

I personally had mixed feelings about this film, I thought it was cleverly made, for example ever time you met a new character; it would be a colored scene, but any other scene would be in black and white, (Spoiler) but when they went to France it was in color. Meadows themes and ideas were very interesting, I liked that the 2 main characters were contrasted, it added to the humor, to see how both of them got to know each other.

On the other hand, the pace of the movie, for me was way too quick, (spoiler) when they decide to go to France they skip the whole trip to there, which I thought that they could of got a bit more personal and find out why Tomo ran away from home and what happened with Marek’s mother. I found it a bit cliche and very cheesy, they decided they would go to France, and they somehow found Maria. I think Shane Meadows rushed the film a bit, and he could have done more with it.

Shane Meadow actually created this to make a short film for a new euro star terminal in st. Pancreas, his aim was to show what love can do to you, no matter how blind it is, and the fact that Marek and Tomo traveled to France not knowing anything but her name shows that.

I would recommend this film, but it will be annoying towards the end with the short ending and the unanswered questions.

I am going to give this film a 6/10, it was a great story and the comedy was great, but they could have done so much more.                                                                

                                                                                                                                                                 
O.K