The pregnant girlfriend of Tommy Nix is assaulted causing her to miscarry . Tommy assaults a couple of police officers so he can be jailed in order to carry out his revenge on the men who committed the crime against his girlfriend A simple revenge plot and perhaps mindful of this director Ron Scalpello goes out of his way to make sure the audience don't get bored by a simple tale of revenge . Massive big mistake because Scalpello almost undermines the movie with his " hey look at me " directorial flourishes that makes a MTV ident look like a static painting in comparison . The more you might be reminded of Alan Clarke's gritty realist cinema borstal drama SCUM the more Ronnie boy tries to distract you I've no idea of Mr Scalpello's background but he's obviously influenced by adverts and music videos and never resists the temptation to have a blasting soundtrack with moody stylistic sharply edited visuals . You don't like drum and bass bruv ? Don't worry because in a few minutes we'll get a long montage with some indie guitar sounds . You want romance ? Good because we'll have a smoochy song for a flashback . You want the film to just get on with telling a story ? You're being a little bit optimistic for real bruv innitThis is something of a pity because Scalpello does manage to develop Paul Van Carter's screenplay intermittently but perhaps not often enough . I was very impressed with Joe Cole who very often doesn't get to say much but does manage to give an angst ridden performance and I look forward to seeing this young actor in more suitable material . Of the other performances the stand out is English Frank ( Not I take it his birth name ) as Jake the prison daddy . Yeah okay it a in your face OTT performance that possibly has no basis in reality but it is memorable and is in keeping with the entire style of the movie OFFENDER ends up being a very curious film where less might have been more . It can never be accused of being boring or having a sluggish pace but it's a film that can't be taken seriously either . In other words it's disposable entertainment

It's no quite Scum but this it is more of an updated version for the 21st Century.Alright, it's nothing like that in Borsral (YOC), you simply just don't wander a prison like that. You can clearly tell that the building is made up and done for film impact.Joe Cole is the shiner here, he carried it all off with an element of realism (I know people like him) but English Frank character is very strange indeed. He has a very unusual gait that makes him walk around like a penguin and speak like he has golf balls in his mouth and spends the whole film pouting. I am not sure that if the directors filmed him like that or it was a chosen style but in some places it's a bit ridiculous and comical.The filming style is very good though, some shots seen to over exposed or frame dropped to give it that technique first seen in 28 days Later. It's the mixture of this and standard shots that makes it good to watch.The violent scenes are well done and the attack on the jewellery shop is excellent as I have seen this happen on the Roman Road in East London.The other actors are pretty good as well and having wandered around estates in London people really do talk like that. I think someone took a bit of time studying accents and mannerisms and for once didn't hold back no matter how strange this talk may seem to middle class UK.Its a good twist on the Scum, but if you are trying to get parallels to Scum you won't. It's different, more realistic albeit the sets and locations are totally false. It also didn't stay clear of issues like Muslims been Muslims just to get extra facilities which was good. Although I was surprised they stopped short of a rape scene that is seems mandatory for this genre but you can assume it happens with the shots of Tommy in the solitary confinement.Worthy of a Blu Ray.....

For those old enough this is kind of a Scum remake (just not quite as good), our lead loses his girlfriend after she miscarries their baby and he wants revenge on the criminals who (possibly) caused it... How does he do that? Gets banged up so he can beat them up.Our lead is then banged up and so begins his quest to avenge his girlfriend, tackling the bad guys one by one without them knowing who or what is doing. Thrown in the bent guard who enjoys partying with the bad guys and you get the picture. It's him against the world. His story is told through a series of flashback and dreams and other than that you never really get to know him... Yes, it sounds dodgy but give it time and it is actually quite good, the lead plays the part well - you can never really work him out as to whether he is a crazy or just really angry and on the edge. The supporting cast are a little weaker, not bad just weaker.There are also scenes where truth and realism take a back seat - like the 2 ZX10 bikes they have, how did they obtain 2 bikes in the same colour in the same place at the same time during the riots all with matching helmets!? - and better yet they can ride them like demons! Then after the attack on the shop they nick another car (BMW this time) and drive to the shop for reasons we never find out, only to encounter the police investigating the crime - really, what a surprise!!! Would any aspiring criminal (been doing since he been Sh**ting rusks, apparently) do that? I doubt it. I could not help feeling that the burglary got shoehorned in at the last minute to beef up the menace of the gangsters...Overlook these small flaws and give it a chance and it's a pretty good film. I doubt it will win awards or Oscars and we probably will never consider it a classic BUT it does draw you in, you do care about the lead and if we rated films on how believable they are (aside the small errors) then this film would do better than most blockbusters.6/10 for me, only just though...To sum up, give it a chance and you might be surprised!! I have a feeling we might be seeing more of the lead in the future.

I was intrigued as to why this was scoring so low on IMDb yet there was a suspicious lack of scaithing reviews - a film that is so hated usually inspires a few rants, yet nothing. So I decided to judge for myself.I've read comparisons to Scum and Prophet, obvious comparisons due to the location being in a borstal, but as the story was of a man seeking vigilante justice comparisons to Death Wish and the totally implausible Law Abiding Citizen spring to mind.Tommy his a hard working youth who's starting a family with his girlfriend when his life is turned upside down by a gang of four armed robbers. It seems clichéd but at least the back story is not quite as obvious as it appears on paper as you learn how Tommy got to this point with just a hint of the man he is on the outside through flash-backs. Now if you can believe the slightly unlikely main plot device that Tommy can commit a crime to get sent to both the same jail and wing as the men/boys he wants justice from then you can buy in to the story - as far as I'm concerned that is the only weak point.Joe Cole is convincing as Tommy, a man who's world has been turned upside down and has gone to extreme lengths to rid himself of the guilt and anger he feels. There's a strong cast who bring a believability to these characters and the portrayal of borstal is grim and harsh yet feels very real.The were 18 people in the 16:40 Monday afternoon showing I went to and none walked out. I don't think it's a classic but I gave it a 7/10 and would recommend to anyone who likes a decent British movies along the lines of Ill Manors and Kidulthood to go and see it whilst it's still showing.