This is a grim film at times but so well made and totally gripping, start to finish. It follows a troubled and violent 19 year old who is sent to the same prison that his dad is already in. I’ve not seen a seemingly more accurate depiction of what prison life must be like in Great Britain.
Intensely interesting with a performance by Jack O’Connell that’ll knock your socks off, especially if you saw him in Unbroken. The two characters couldn’t be more different and he dominates each time he’s on screen for both films. After seeing this, I wonder why he wasn’t nominated for some awards. His work here is so much more interesting and compelling than what Redmayne did to win Best Actor (not that Redmayne wasn’t great, just thought this was better).
It’s dark at times, sad to see what life is like in there, and comes with all of the attitude and filth that would be expected to be experienced in a prison but if you can handle seeing how these people live, it’s an amazing film. This could make my top 10 for the year. It’s that good.