I missed this film and caught up with it on Netflix.. What a decent film this is...Lots of twists and turns bit hard to follow but it all comes out at the end... Bit like Pulp Fiction the plot line.. Well worth watching and you would watch it again.. Its on my ship wreck list

This review contains spoilers - hard to point out the flaws without a few spoilers!Firstly, I liked the cast and location... and I generally liked what they were attempting with the story. However, there seemed too many points that were either very unlikely or didn't make sense. For example:We're told that Harvey was just an ordinary, everyday guy who Steven Roper randomly chose to plant drugs in his flat - why would the police and courts convict someone of drugs offences (heroin no less) when they have no prior convictions? Wouldn't they look at the evidence as a whole and suspect foul play? Just doesn't seem likely. And why would Steven Roper plant drugs on an innocent person anyway? Wouldn't it be better to plant them on someone who the police already suspect?And if Harvey (and his friends) are just ordinary, everyday guys, why are they suddenly good at pulling off a heist? Being clever and having the guts isn't enough surely.The first time Harvey bumps into Roper in the street he gives him loads of lip and attitude. An ordinary guy who's been in jail for something he hasn't done and he mouths off to the likes of Roper (who was the person who got him sent to jail)? Make yourself noticed for the sake of the plan, maybe. But being tough and cocky? No.When it comes to the robbery, why did Dempsey take time to break in through one door but then also take time to break out through the roof? Surely going back out through the door would have been quicker. Sure, it was so he could fire the arrow from the roof... but why was he doing that anyway? I must have totally missed that part. Some money needed to fired through the air and hit a dart board because...? Did he need to get that money to Charlie quickly? Was that the money Charlie planted in the security room? If so, fine, but running the money over to him would have been almost as quick surely? Especially if he doesn't have to spend time breaking out through the roof. Factor in the possibility that he could have missed with the arrow and left Charlie searching for it. Seems like a flashy idea that is all flash and no benefit.Another point, the money is in a safe... in a basement... a basement with no windows... a basement that is alarmed. But when they put the safe in, they placed it over a drain cover? A cover that covers a drain large enough for someone to fit in? Really? No-one thought that was a bad place to put the safe? And why does a basement have an opening to a storm drain anyway?Finally, a minor point really but when characters in films are trying to be clever but that cleverness doesn't stand up then it sticks out. When DI West notices that the tape recorder is still running and listens to it, Harvey (on the tape) says "You can either run after me and bring me back or you can sit down and listen to this tape". All I could think was, he could pause the tape, run after Harvey, bring him back and THEN listen to the tape. The tape isn't going anywhere.

THE RISE is a would-be British crime thriller set on the grim streets of Leeds. The Northern setting is a good one, allowing for a touch of originality in the locales and some interesting accents, but otherwise it's business as usual for this low budget production. An ex-con decides to pull off one last heist with the aid of his buddies and decides to go up against a crime boss, both to make a fortune and get his own back on the man who sent him to prison in the first place.There's a fair bit to like in this film, not least the naturalistic performances from a trio of young stars. Luke Treadaway (ATTACK THE BLOCK) is the lead and Matthew Lewis (HARRY POTTER) and Iwan Rheon (GAME OF THRONES) his ne'er do well buddies. In addition, we get a world-weary Timothy Spall as a cop whose wraparound story structures the plot, and Neil Maskell (KILL LIST) in his nastiest turn yet as the villain of the piece; both are more than effective.The shooting style is good, the acting grounded, and there are plenty of novel twists and turns in the narrative. A shame, then, that this film isn't as good as it thinks it is and that the whole is a lot weaker than the sum of its parts. The script mistakes expletives for wit, and all of the characters are as cold as can be, which robs the movie of much of its suspense - how can you be immersed in the proceedings when you don't care whether the leads live or die? THE RISE is also a slow burner, which as a filming technique is fine when there's a build-up to something worthwhile, but the actual heist is a disappointment and a huge anticlimax when it comes down to it. This film's okay, but hardly the stuff of greatness that reviews would have you believe...

I got to catch this at TIFF (My first film ever seen at the festival) and loved it. Great story, pacing, soundtrack, cinematography, writing, acting and direction. First-time writer-director Rowan Athale gets it right. My only problem was that he tries to do too much in his debut. What he does is great, but if he had tried to maybe do less in terms of covering the norms of heist and crime films, i.e. the ____ steps of committing a crime successfully. That's it. Timothy Dalton and Luke Treadway have great back and forth dialogue, and just when you think the film is over and you have unanswered questions, your questions are answered and you are given more of the brilliant story, and a great ending that perfectly ties up everything. I'm not sure if this will appeal to North American audiences, but it looks like it could be a huge hit in the UK. I loved it, and I highly recommend it.