119, Blitz

3 things commonly make a great movie.  1, Its got Jason Statham in it.  2, Its set in London & 3, Its not called "Attack the Block".  So - all boxes checked - here we go!!!

Firstly, lets start with the 18 certificate that Blitz has been labeled with.  Not worthy! Yes its got a lot of violence but no sex and not a single actual gory moment, however its funny how the introduction of a single word can send people into a mad frenzy when rating movies.  So, to be specific (but not too much as I know the little kiddies read this) it has got every body's favourite swear word in it - one that only gets banded about in either extreme confrontation or that of a giggling group of friends but definitely not one for polite conversation.  And that in a nutshell is the dilemma of making a movie an 18.  Moving on........

Statham does what he does best.  A gritty London copper, plain clothed and a bit on the edge as the movie opens with him taking a hurling bat to a gang of car thieves outside his apartment / flat.  Then the credits role - so, nice guy? Well.  Yes.  He is not a dirty cop, just likes to dish out punishment to those deserving of it and his softer side comes to light a few times with his slightly odd couping of the new Gay Superintendent, transferred from Posh London to the S.E to head up the criminal unit after the untimely death of his predecessors wife leading to a leave of absence.  Between them they are like Kenneth Williams meets, well - Jason Statham!  but its has his funny moments and Statham dishes out one liners as quick as he does broken noses while keeping it non-cheesy and specific.

With an all British cast its not just Statham that stands out, Zawe Ashton (Bianca in St Trinians 2) is brilliant as an ex-undercover junkie cop who is crying out for love and support and has grown up a hell of a lot since beat boxing in Frittens Dorms!  The other cops and The Blitz himself are also brilliant and mostly are all recognisable from TV dramas.

Its great when this kind of movie comes along.  America hype up cop movies with all action, over the top drama that is well received but not ordinary of maybe an LA freeway or a New York suburb.  We manage to keep all the action and suspense while at the same time make it believable, down to earth and entertaining.

Imagine Bad Boys or Mission impossible on a smaller scale? - They would not work and they don't have too.  They make big budget worth it but this does not need the glitz and glamour of huge names - Statham is a main attraction at the best of times but in this he truly does show his down to earth roots and is backed up brilliantly.

As you can tell, I thoroughly enjoyed this even with the "C" word thrown in a few times and being a cert 18 kept the noisy kids out which left me, My wife and about another 200 movie goers in silent awe as the 90 minutes barrelled past like a freight train to Alaska.

If Pirates 4 left you excited then this a happy "down to earth with a bump" movie and one completely deserving of awesome write ups. I hope you read this Jason - Keep making them and I will keep watching them!

See this if...............................................You're proud to be British (or if American, which I know about 1200 of my readers are, This ones ours!  MI4 is yours)