Twenty8K (2012)

Such a bad bad movie. It is watchable, but not worth your time even in the most boring hours of your life. Skip it, or regret it.

To be honest, reading the existing reviews for this film on IMDb had me preparing for a cheap-as-chips stinker of 'Get Keith' proportions. That I was tempted to give it a chance is down to an admiration for scriptwriter Paul Abbot's past work, the presence of the lovely Parminder Nagra in the cast...and the fact that it was a Poundland purchase.It's not a great film. It has an interesting premise, but never seems to realise its potential: one is left with the impression (possibly mistaken) of a project that has been conceived as a mini- series, but truncated uncomfortably into feature form. With a little more character development, and less pedestrian direction, it could have been a far more interesting and effective conspiracy thriller. It is let down by transparent, snarling villains - who render the unfolding conspiracy to the narrative back-burner: WHY they are twirling their pantomime-villain moustaches is incidental. Ms Nagra tries very hard to hold things together, but how a Paris fashion designer is so adept at covert observation worthy of the best screen PIs is never touched upon, let alone developed. Visually it is unremarkable, and for a film whose plot concerns unscrupulous redevelopment of East End properties in the run up to the 2012 Olympics, that distinctive part of London is represented in only one scene: the cinematographer choosing, instead to feature the same tired skylines and landmarks of the prosperous city centre. The music is obtrusive and distracting and, in many cases, completely unnecessary - at times pointlessly imitating Nicholas Hooper's score for Abbot's 2003 'State of Play' TV drama.That said, the cast is generally good - making the best they can with an under-developed script - and THAT is all that stops this sinking completely.

I was initially looking forward to this movie, as Paul Abbott's established himself as a different and provocative writer/producer. The central premise is pretty solid, the director aptly captures the gritty and seedy side of London, production values are great for an indie, and the actors do pretty well. Yet there are several big problems.Main culprit is the script. Parminder Nagra, who was wonderful in "Bend it like Beckham", is the lead -- but her character just frowns, sulks, and clomps her way through the narrative like a Nancy Drew without her Prozac. And the character shift -- she starts as a fashion designer-turned-amateur sleuth in the first 10 minutes -- doesn't make much sense at all. And her co-stars -- especially Jonas Armstrong, playing another iteration of Pete from "The Ghost Squad", and Stephen Dillane -- are woefully underused.And further is the pacing of the film, as well as the denouement. There's no sense of urgency or excitement as Deeva pieces together the clues, but when the film starts getting better around its climax, it's too little too late. To top it off, the ending is a total 180 from the film's overarching tone.If you're a fan of the actors, rent it. But I wouldn't recommend a blind buy.

If you liked 'Bend it Like Beckham', or any episode of Scooby Doo, you are associated with the film , or you are a moron, you will like this Movie.For the rest of us it is utter drivel. Laughingly billed as a Thriller, it is sadly typical of parochial, twee, out-of-touch British-film making at its worst. From the ridiculously premised and clichéd Plot ie Young Asian Fashion executive turns Detective to clear her brother of murder( Think Get Carter meets 'The Kumars'... and there is no great 'twist-ending' as previously stated in a 'friendly' review), to the patronising 'gritty, street' overlay that is about as gritty and street as an episode of Eastenders. The casting is dreadful, full of hammy British B-List ensemble, cartoon-character Asians with Conti rent-a-yob types as the baddies. The script is cliché-ridden and woefully out of touch. The locations and settings are every media-types view of how London 'really is'. This is nothing like the real London. I know, I was born here and still live hereThe Cinematography is average at best and again cliché-ridden ( cue regular backdrops of the Dome, Canary Wharf etc....But the worst aspect of this whole sorry mess is that films like this are still being made and are an insult to the British Film Industry. Thank God for ' Welcome to the Punch' !