davidandrewenglish There is always space for unbound and experimental creativity, a place for art and film making just for the fun - but any project with an inspiring director, talented big-name cast and budget of nearly £2,000,000 has to have some kind of merit. Bottom line: There was no reason for this film - The outcome wasn't original, entertaining or artistic and it certainly wasn't of any monetary value.Garage manager Derek (Rhys Ifans) has his marriage proposal to girlfriend Shirley (Shirley Henderson) turned down live on national television. Shirley's ex Jimmy (Robert Carlyle) sees the show and then lands in trouble in Glasgow and so decides to return to the Midlands and pursue his old flame.Shane Meadows usually shines producing well observed British realism in drama format. Those dramas may well contain subtle or dark elements of comedy which play their part in telling a wider thought-provoking story. Meadows set his formula aside and dips over the line into the reverse: a comedy with drama elements. Meadows' signature poignant observations of character are replaced with a bunch of flat caricatures that conform to the prejudiced outside view of the working classes as told by entertainment shows such as 'Vanessa'. The proved style of delicately building events and then forcing the audience to have a hard look at society is here swapped for a what-you-see-is-what-you-get predictable narrative.A complete change in style from a film maker is brave and commendable, if the product works, but a comedy is a comedy and sadly 'Once Upon a Time in the Midlands' just isn't funny.The famous faces detract from the realism but generally the actors all do an alright with the flimsy cartoons that they had to work with: Scottish McTroublemaker, Welsh Wetfish, Shellsuit Bingomum and Jim Royle. Some commentators have lost their sense of perspective and lauded Finn Atkin's performance as Marlene as 'outstanding'. This says more about the overall quality of the film than about Atkins.A blip in the (otherwise sensational) Shane Meadows collection.

eplromeo8 Shane Meadows is an emerging filmmaker on the global stage. He has a much-ballyhooed film at this year's Tribeca Film Festival (SOMERS TOWN) that I tried to get tickets to, but found that it was quickly sold out. After seeing one of his earlier films – ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE MIDLANDS – last Saturday on Reel 13, I'm almost relieved.Meadows has a familiar and talented cast to work with here - faces you've seen and admired including Robert Carlyle (TRAINSPOTTING), Rhys Ifans (NOTTING HILL) and Shirley Henderson (HARRY POTTER AND THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS). However, even they can't help the film overcome its rather tired and recycled plot – small-time gangster on the lam returns home to woo back his old flame who has become involved with a third party. It's the kind of love triangle that Howard Hawks did to perfection in HIS GIRL Friday, but ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE MIDLANDS never even approaches that level of cleverness or intelligence. Instead, it has the feel of an absurd Mike Leigh film – the same lower class British subjects and vernacular, but with a comic, slapstick-type sensibility that feels more like a bad American sitcom.The accents were often hard to decipher, which has always been a problem for Carlyle, but even for the other actors, the pseudo-cockney slang of the Midlands (a somewhat suburban, albeit lower class area literally in the middle of England) made many scenes difficult to follow. There seemed to be a lot of inside jokes and references that were Greek to me and that I assume would only be amusing to a Brit or those more familiar with the Midlands area. Overall, I think the "Britishness" of the film left myself and, I suspect, many other New York viewers feeling detached and indifferent toward a tone and sense of humor that is foreign to us. Generally speaking, when one watches a film, one wants to get wrapped up in its story and its characters. One wants to be emotionally involved, but unfortunately, ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE MIDLANDS left me feeling cold.(For more information on this or any other Reel 13 film, check out their website at www.reel13.org)

rob-carthy I generally agree with all the above negative reviews. But what got me was the casual dismissal of 'the Midlands' having hijacked it for the sake of a smart movie title. There was not a single midlands accent anywhere behind the leading voices of a Scot, a Scouser, a Cockney and a Taff or any kind of geographical peg. There is also a big problem with a so called light hearted movie employing Robert Carlyle as a moody violent character. We've seen him play those parts so convincingly in the past that it's impossible to see him in a lighter vein. I guess the fault lies in the lack of purpose or direction from the outset.These sort of efforts give British movies a generally undeserved bad name. And Rhys Ifans doe eyed simpleton shtick is really beginning to grate.

samueltunnicliffe 'Once upon a time in the midlands' is a low budget film, and it shows. To be blunt, the film was possibly the most disappointing movie of the year. From looking at the cast, I had high expectations of the film, with talents such as Ricky Tomlinson, Ricky Carlisle, and Kathy Burke etc as well as the famous director himself, Shane Meadows. I feel that the main contribution to the let down of the film was the weak storyline.Thanx!A lot!Thanks!Thank you very much!