Britain’s boys ‘n the hood?
“I promise I’ll be really careful this time”
Bullet Boy
The subject of gang culture and gun crime has proved popular with many filmmakers. In 1991 John Singleton delivered his seminal gang drama Boyz ‘N the Hood, and more recently City of God delivered a powerful insight into teenage crime in the slums of Rio. With reoccurring incidents of gun crime being reported on British soil it is not surprising to find our homegrown filmmakers turning their artistic talents to the issue.
The result is Bullet Boy, a film that intends to show the damage a single gun can do when it enters circulation on the streets. Ricky (Walters), released from jail and with the best intentions of going straight, soon finds himself drawn back into his old life via theirresponsible actions of his friend Wisdom (Black). As the events unfold we begin to see history repeating itself as Ricky’s brother begins to make the same mistakes.
The question being asked by the director/co-writer Saul Dibb is: will anyone break this cycle? British drama tends to focus more on lowkey social problems, as in Mike Leigh or Ken Loach films, and when the industry does dabble with violence on the British streets, it is the overblown and romanticised violence of the criminal underworld made so popular by the likes of Guy Ritchie.
Dibb, however, chooses to show a different Britain to these films, full of angry young men whose strict code of behaviour leads to unjustified bloodshed. However, the film falls short of its noble aims. Shot in the style of a documentary drama, full of real settings and naturalistic performances, it comes off as strangely unrealistic, and at times unintentionally funny. For example the event that starts the film’s bloodshed is a small act of damage to a car wing mirror.
This eventually culminates in the death of two people and one dog. Cue a scene in which a character explains: “You kill my dog, you kill one of my brethren.” Presumably this is supposed to be involving, but having witnessed the film’s subsequent events, you can’t help but feel he would have been better off just getting another dog. Ultimately though, the film’s problem lies in its very subject matter.
Whilst gun culture in Britain is a problem, it pales in comparison to that witnessed in other parts of the world – parts of the world that have already been represented on film. Sure, Dibb is entitled to his say, but angrier, more convincing (and, one fears, slightly better informed) voices have got there first and effectively overshadowed the film before its release.
It is a pity, as this is still a reasonably engrossing 90 minutes, but you can’t help but feel that Dibb should have aimed his sights at a bigger target.
28th Apr 2005