The Grind (2012)

Thanks for the memories!

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

Folks, welcome to amateur hour. How anybody who read this script, worked on set or even served tea at the cafeteria kept a straight face is beyond me. You could fill volumes of the Encyclopedia Britainnica listing the myriad of faults here, but let me have a stab:1. There is a nightclub that plays the same two rubbish house tunes throughout, but no-one inside complains, in fact they all dance EXACTLY the same way. Often, there are large stretches with no dialogue, just the camera panning around this dive and somehow always ending up focusing on a blonde girl. Did she sleep with the director to get so much attention?2. The thrust of the plot is of this dude owing money to some boss man, who must be the least intimidating heavy ever. Look at him on the front cover, with his little short arse and the constipated expression on his face. Yet somehow, instead of crushing him underfoot, everyone is terrified of him. Did the 6ft 5 ex-boxer fail to turn up to auditions, so they were forced to use this hobbit?3. There is a scene here when the dude that owes money returns to his flat to find they've smashed up one of his rooms, including sprayed graffiti on the wall (OHH NOO)!! His wheelchair bound mother stumbles on the wreckage first, when she promptly has a heart attack. We then see him again later on in the same room, holding onto a shard of glass until blood drips down his hand. This might not sound like much, but the way it unfurls on screen is absolutely hilarious, especially with the 'tragic' music in the background.4. The dude that owes money works at a generic store. To get the dosh, he decides to rob the safe. He enlists the help of his mate who works at the aforementioned nightclub, who says no. Later on, his mate has a change of heart, and turns up just as the dude's robbery is going belly-up. His mate grabs the gun to let the dude escape, and when the police turn up, pretends he was the one who committed the offense. This is seen as a 'noble sacrifice' in the context of the film. Only problem is, EVERYONE in the store has already seen the dude waving the gun around, so he has no chance of getting away with it. OOPS.5. Danny John-Jules? SERIOUSLY? You couldn't wait a year to start making the new series of Red Dwarf? You had to embarrass yourself, your family, your pets etc till the end of time by agreeing to star in this atrocity? For Shame. FOR SHAME.Basically, it would have been a lot better if everyone had gone home, the script was thrown in the nearest furnace and the £500 budget was donated to charidee. After all, it's not too long to Children In Need... 1/10

A gangster movie set on the streets of London is nothing new. The story is interesting and the rave culture come through well and it's nice to see a new film maker on the scene doing a different take on the gangster genre. The film revolves around Bobby and his debts to the local crime lord Dave. The performances are weak in places and could have done with some stronger female characters being developed such as Zoe Tapper has a great future, but clearly it was a guns and geezers movie with trance music and a heist thrown in. It's definitely not a student film and it's good to see the film doing so well in the charts and doing a lot better than the crapline of films that are out there! 8 out of 10 because of the brave ending and being so high in the charts

I saw this at the Apollo cinema and I have to say it was visually very impressive. Very nice grade similar to Heat for the nightclub scenes and reverting back to a desaturated look for the urban scenes.It was especially rewarding to have the writer, producer and director (Rishi Opel) in attendance for the Q&A after the film.The performances were good, the lead was cast right as the debt ridden, out of control, Bobby who's quiet and lonely and the director keeps it real by not giving the audience too much information about Bobby and his past dealings with his best mate Vince. It kept me interested in the character of Bobby and wanting to know more about him.Vince, Bobby's best mate runs the club for Dave (Jamie Foreman) and Vince comes across as the ambitious, loud, thuggish, violent types who wants it all including running a casino for Dave. The performance of Vince was poor and let the film down in some aspects. The casting was just wrong. It was an unusual choice of having the two stories running parallel and this slowed the film down in parts. Perhaps this was the original part of the story and it did come across as intentional. Jamie Foreman plays it straight, as the guy who wants his money and if he doesn't get it, then something is going to happen. His performance is great and keeps the film moving. Danny-John Jules (Cat from Red Dwarf) turns in a good performance as the wheeler dealer mate and surprised me with an unusual role I've not seen him play before. During the Q&A, I found it interesting to hear the experience Rishi Opel had throughout the process of making and completing the film and problems he encountered. It was clear to see that The Grind was his life story and solely his vision. His story was tampered with from the people involved, and problems with dealing with negative people, but all he wanted to do was just make a movie and entertain an audience. His knowledge of the early 90's dance movement showed he had experience in the rave culture and his enthusiasm came across well and was certainly infectious. It was good to hear that he hold no grudges against anyone and that he'll be behind the camera again for his second feature!Overall it was astonishingly impressive to see what an independent, enthusiastic, Writer, Producer & Director can achieve. A really interesting debut!

I hadn't actually heard of this movie until I stumbled upon it searching for Jamie Foreman from EastEnders. I had no expectations for it at all as I had not heard of the supporting cast members apart from Danny-John Jules who plays the "Cat" from Red Dwarf! I have to say that the ending was an interesting choice that I was not expecting as I was really rooting for both Bobby & Vince. The storyline is good, a slightly different take on the gangster genre. We actually see the character development of the main characters, with two different visual styles which I found really cool. The acting was mostly good all round, a couple of the female characters were slightly weak in moments but not bad. I wish Zoe Tapper was in a bit more. It's very urban & gritty which is quite popular at the moment. The Grind moves along at a good pace and the slow bits are there to allow the audience to breathe & let the characters develop which is a bonus. I'd rate The Grind as a realistic portrayal of urban life & the nightclub world. There are issues in terms of technical quality, but being low budget it was a good solid effort all round!