Shifty
Riz Ahmed (Britz, Dead Set) takes the title role of Shifty, a thriller charting an action packed 24 hours in the life of a young crack cocaine dealer on the outskirts of London. The sudden return home of his best friend sets in motion a chain of events that see Shiftys life quickly spiral out of control. Stalked by a customer desperate to score at all costs, and with his family about to turn their back on him for good, Shifty must out-run and out-smart a rival drug dealer intent on setting him up. As his long time friend Chris, played by Daniel Mays (The Bank Job, Plus One), confronts the dark past he left behind him, Shifty is forced to face up to the violent future he's heading fast towards.--©Metrodome Distribution
3.3 out of 5 based on 17 reviews
|
Omniscore:
|
| Certificate |
15 |
| Genre |
Thriller |
| Director |
Eran Creevy |
| Cast |
Daniel Mays, Jason Flemyng Riz Ahmed |
| Studio |
Metrodone Distribution |
| Release Date |
April 2009 |
| Running Time |
85 minutes |
| |
Riz Ahmed (Britz, Dead Set) takes the title role of Shifty, a thriller charting an action packed 24 hours in the life of a young crack cocaine dealer on the outskirts of London. The sudden return home of his best friend sets in motion a chain of events that see Shiftys life quickly spiral out of control. Stalked by a customer desperate to score at all costs, and with his family about to turn their back on him for good, Shifty must out-run and out-smart a rival drug dealer intent on setting him up. As his long time friend Chris, played by Daniel Mays (The Bank Job, Plus One), confronts the dark past he left behind him, Shifty is forced to face up to the violent future he's heading fast towards.--©Metrodome Distribution
Visit official website
Watch the trailer
Reviews
The Guardian
Peter Bradshaw
"...first-time director Eran Creevy kicks things up a notch with this shrewd and engaging drama, achieved on the smallest of budgets."
24/04/2009
Read Full Review
The Independent
Anthony Quinn
"Not really a fun night out, but the tightest and most textured drama of South-east lowlife since London to Brighton."
24/04/2009
Read Full Review
The Scotsman
Alistair Harkness
"Terrifically acted, and with perceptive observations about race, class, family and economics woven unobtrusively into a story peppered with plenty of wit and palpable menace, the end result is a tightly-structured, hard-working thriller with a raw feel for character and place, and an optimistic outlook on the need for friendship and taking responsibility for one's actions."
24/04/2009
Read Full Review
The Mirror
Mark Adams
"smart and funny ultra low- budget Brit film"
19/04/2009
Read Full Review
The Sunday Times
Cosmo Landesman
"This excellent debut from the writer and director Eran Creevy is a low-budget British film that looks at male friendship, the impact of drugs and how you can never hide from your past."
26/04/2009
Read Full Review
Total Film
Ellen E Jones
"Mercifully free of Danny Dyer cameos or Guy Ritchie mockneyisms, this works as both an entertaining gangster thriller and a hard-hitting piece of social realism. Absorbing, moving and authentic, Shifty never once strikes a false note."
30/03/2009
Read Full Review
The Observer
Philip French
"...the film has a sense of authenticity and there's no sentimental suggestion that Shifty's way of life is the inevitable result of his background."
26/04/2009
Read Full Review
Channel 4 Film
Ali Catterall
"Creevy eschews ... woozy, arthouse ambience ... for naturalistic dialogue and performances within carefully framed and composed shots; properly cinematic, grown-up direction. Combined with a slightly twee, mannered score, it means Shifty is more from the Mike Leigh school of hard knocks, and we never get the impression we're watching a wildly original cinematic voice."
01/05/2009
Read Full Review
The Evening Standard
Derek Malcolm
"Couched in a kind of Pinteresque slum language that needs a glossary to be totally intelligible, the film boasts an authenticity and wholly natural performances, particularly from Mays, and is devoid of the usual clichés of its genre."
23/04/2009
Read Full Review
The Daily Express
Allan Hunter
"The story may not be entirely unfamiliar but writer/director Eran Creevy transforms autobiographical material into an engaging, energetic little drama that is full of promise."
24/04/2009
Read Full Review
The Financial Times
Karl French
"The story progresses in strictly linear style through a succession of encounters with various shady characters before coming to a not wholly unpredictable climax. But it is all done with conviction, is well acted, particularly by the two leads, and is a brisk, promising debut for Creevy."
22/04/2009
Read Full Review
The Independent on Sunday
Nicholas Barber
"The camerawork is dispiritingly uncinematic, but the terrific performances just about compensate."
26/04/2009
Read Full Review
The Daily Telegraph
Tim Robey
"The British drama Shifty, made under Film London’s tiny-budget Microwave scheme, has two ace performances and an intriguingly low-key quality - we’re never quite sure where it’s heading."
23/04/2009
Read Full Review
Time Out
Wally Hammond
"Creevy’s fine ear for dialogue, sensitive and productive direction of actors and confident control of tone is all the more impressive for being delivered under the short schedule and tight budgetary exigencies of Film London’s Microwave initiative."
23/04/2009
Read Full Review
The Times
Wendy Ide
"The production values are lo-fi but spirited performances, matey humour and an edgy authenticity carry the story."
23/04/2009
Read Full Review
Variety
Derek Elley
"Flecked with humor and strongly cast in its supporting roles (Simpson, Annis, Flemyng), pic never reaches beyond its modest grasp, though the expletive-heavy dialogue and Mays' flat perf are drawbacks."
31/10/2008
Read Full Review
The Daily Mail
Chris Tookey
"As art, Shifty is unoriginal and tedious. I find it difficult to imagine who would pay to see this for entertainment. "
23/04/2009
Read Full Review