Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3102 in DVD
• Released on: 2009-01-12
• Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.77:1
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 68 minutes

Synopsis
Acclaimed British filmmaker Shane Meadows (DEAD MAN'S SHOES, TWENTY FOUR SEVEN) steps outside his familiar Midlands for his first film set in London, SOMERS TOWN, a rites of passage drama that elaborates on the themes of the director's earlier A ROOM FOR ROMEO BRASS and THIS IS ENGLAND.

THIS IS ENGLAND's phenomenal Thomas Turgoose stars as Tomo, who, having runaway from his native Nottingham, finds himself on the streets of London's King's Cross. It isn't long before he becomes friends with Marek (Piotr Jagiello), a young Polish immigrant who lives nearby. While this unlikely pair seems to have little in common at first, it isn't long before they realise the trials and tribulations of youth transcend cultural boundaries and both begin to harbour desires for a beautiful young waitress who works in their local cafe.


Meadows effortlessly crafts another poignant tale that addresses the obstacles youngsters face when making the transition from child to adult in SOMERS TOWN; a film that ranks alongside the director's best work. Turgoose—who was a revelation in 2006's THIS IS ENGLAND—is an engaging lead, ably supported by newcomer Jagiello, consolidating Meadows' reputation as an incredible director of younger actors.
Natasha Braier's stunning black and white photography showcases a London that's not been seen in decades, providing an exquisite backdrop against which this intensely involving drama plays out.

Customer Reviews

Short and sweet
The publicity surrounding this film on cinema release was pretty impressive due to the fact that Shane Meadows's previous films have been pretty gritty, however it did deliver the goods. Shot in black and white, it's the story of Tomo, a teenager running away from a dodgy home life in Nottingham who journeys down to Somers Town (near St Pancras, London) and meets Polish immigrant Marek who lives with his construction worker father in a nearby estate. They form a bond after Tomo is mugged and both become enamoured with a Parisian waitress who works in a cafe nearby.

I found the characterisation to be particularly adept and Meadows weaves a number of amusing situations throughout the screenplay, one highlight of which was when Tomo steals a bag of clothing from a laundrette and ends up looking like 'a female golfer!' There is also an amusing moment when the boys' dodgy dealer/trader extracts a tenner from deep within his underpants. Many of the locations of the film were familiar to my husband, who grew up in the area and some of his family still reside in the area. I found the running time at 68 minutes to be perfect but the fantasy type ending kind of ruined an impressive film as it really hammered the point home that Meadows was hired to produce a film to publicise the new St Pancras Eurostar terminal.

"I think I look like a female golfer..."
"Somers Town" is being considered by many as a mini-project for director Shane Meadows before his next big feature. This said, it is remarkable just how satisfying a viewing experience this movie is. Even though it only runs for a paltry 68 minutes (!), it does not feel by the end that we have been short-changed. In actual fact, the length seems pretty near perfect.

Meadows is a superb and prolific film director, and it's great to see so many of his trademarks occuring here - namely, plenty of laugh-out-loud moments, superb improvisation from talented actors, sympathetic characters, visually arresting shots of English council estates and an elegant folky soundtrack to underpin the imagery. All the ingredients are here.

The plot of Somers Town concerns a young lad, Thommo, who has entered London as a runaway from his native Nottingham. He is promptly mugged, wanders aimlessly for a while, then eventually befriends a local Polish lad Marek. The film touchingly deals with their friendship and a shared obsession with a beautiful French waitress. Okay, it's not really a plot as such. The film is more like a series of incidents, many of which are "choke-on-your-tea" hilarious and many of which are genuinely moving. I won't give too much away, but keep an eye out for a supremely dodgy Arsenal shirt, a ten pound note in a pair of underpants and a painfully humorous masturbation sequence!

So where does this film stand in Meadows' cannon? Well, I would say it's almost up there with his best work. Certainly, it is his sweetest and most endearingly whimsical movie to date. With the focus on childhood friendship, the story reminds me slightly of Meadows' earlier masterpiece "A Room For Romeo Brass". Visually, it recalls "Twenty Four Seven", his confident debut. It is also refreshingly free of the foul language that runs through his other features...so, finally...a Meadows movie you can watch with your kids!

In conclusion, I would say that "Somers Town" is not the best movie Meadows has ever produced, but it is undoubtedly the warmest. In fact, it is as warm and welcoming as a buttered crumpet served with a steaming mug of tea.

8/10. A quality production. Roll on Meadows' next movie!

Sunshine in Shaneworld
"Somerstown" was originally intended to be a short film to promote Eurostar. Two days into the ten day shoot, however, director Shane Meadows began to think that he might have a feature on his hands. Meadows describes this film, on the concise but absorbing extras, as his sort of ode to sixties new wave French cinema, and that isn't too far from the truth. It's definitely Meadows most fun film, admittedly "fun" in Meadows World means "gritty black and white social drama", but unlike the rest of his body of work "Somerstown" is positively playful in its overall vibe. It's brilliant that the film exists because it manages to sit perfectly alongside Meadows other films and actually manages to put them into better context...it's almost as if a ray of sun has managed to get through Shane's dusty, Nottingham council house window and brighten things up. If you love his films you will absolutely beyond a shadow of a doubt love this, if you don't, or haven't yet dived in this makes the perfect entry point, a proper masterpiece.