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Adulthood

Noel Clarke wrote and starred in Kidultood, but here he takes a turn at directing too. But can the 32 year old talent cope with such a heavy responsibility?

The film starts 6 years after the end of Kidulthood, with Sam Peel(Clarke) being released from prison. If you’ve seen Kidulthood, you’ll know that he brutally murdered the character Trife. Now, it seems, someone is out for revenge. Sam must fight his way to the truth even though all he wants is peace.

He visits his past friends and enemies and tries to make amends. Even visiting Trife’s closest friends who might wish him harm. He teams up with Lexi(Scarlett Alice Johnson), who has problems of her own, to track down Trife’s friend Jay, who they believe is trying to kill him.

The plot gets a bit messy after that. Featuring flashbacks to Sam’s prison time. Introducing characters for one scene then never seeing them again. Jay’s friends, the gangsters, seem superfluous to the plot. Lexi’s traumatic retelling of her rape seems forced, as though they were trying to be as controversial as they could.
You can tell there are some good ideas at work, but throwing them together and hoping they stick isn’t the way to make a film.

Despite some of the negative aspects, it is entertaining. The plotline where the gangsters try to get Sam’s brother to kill him is well-thought out and captivating. It’s only at the last minute that Sam is saved by showing his face.

There was one glaring plot-hole for me though. It kept popping back into my mind. If Sam is in jail alongside Trife’s uncle, how come the Uncle didn’t recognise him right from the start?

It’s not as good as the first film which had a better flow to it. Clarke’s direction is a bit cagey sometimes. He speeds up an altercation to the point where the lads look like they’re break dancing.

Verdict 6/10
Not a complete right off, but not a step forward either.