John Mason loved this film but the end came too all of a sudden.surely darcy's guys would have helped him more after the beating he gave tim's dad and disappeared. love the guys and how they all gelled after being enemies. it being shot in black and white added to the sense of a drab dreary existence experienced by these lads. bob hoskins is terrific. the realism of the club's first match, in that they lost their fights and even showed obvious distress was a refreshing change from the Hollywood idea that they would overcome all and succeed first time out. it shows, as in Fagash's case that you can't go from comatose druggy to champion boxer in 24 hours. i would watch it again and again. great actors acting greatly. shane meadows is a genius. every single one of his films are infinitely watchable.

Lee Eisenberg In one of many great British movies, a man (Bob Hoskins) helps working-class youths try to make something of themselves in an economically depressed town in England. It is the first time that they can ever be anything greater. But then tragedy strikes and the whole thing falls apart. The gritty "24 7: Twenty Four Seven" is no ordinary make-something-of-yourself story. The grainy black and white cinematography makes you feel like there's sandpaper rubbing against your face, and they certainly don't sugar-coat anything here. It's a movie that I recommend to everyone. Just don't expect anything "nice". A very good debut from Shane Meadows.

gbheron "Twentyfourseven" is not an easy movie to watch, actually I found it quite difficult, but well worth it. The story chronicles one man's attempt to bring meaning and purpose to a group of working-class youths in a grimy English city. Bob Hoskins plays Alan Darcy a sweet, well-meaning man trying to do good against insurmountable odds. Shot in black-and-white the visual despair of the public housing projects and the almost bombed-out urban landscape highlights the dark mood of the film. Why should these unemployed young men care about Darcy's dream? They're on the dole and have their alcohol, drugs and football. Why bother? This is Darcy's challenge. The excellent ensemble cast brings life to the rather loose, not-so-good script. But the actors pull it off admirably and provide us with a good, although disturbing film. Definitely not Saturday-night-lite, rent-a-video with the family stuff, but still very good. If you're in the mood.

kezia I've been waiting a while for this to reach our screens, and though anticipation undoubtedly adds flavour, I was favourably impressed. Meadows has been billed as Britain's new white hope and 'Twentyfourseven' promises good things for the future. It may not have the (attempted) dramatic scope of a film like 'the Boxer', which in plot terms it resembles, but Meadows covers the ground efficiently and without histrionics in a free-flowing cinematic style that simultaneously displays a tensile strength. Meadows' eye is good (the crane shot outside the club at a crucial point towards the end shows that he can do formal, too) but his ear is even better. The exchanges and insults between the two gangs and among themselves, even when not fully comprehended by my kiwi ear, make similar lines from 'Good Will Hunting' and other popular films sound contrived. The freshness of 'Twentyfourseven' may be supported by control and critical judgement, but it is, all the same, real.