Nil By Mouth (DVD)

Aside from being a film second in the history book for the most occurrences of the word "fuck", Nil By Mouth is an incredibly powerful portrayal of director and writer Gary Oldman's experiences growing up on a London council estate. Oldman's authentic (seemingly improvised) screenplay is exposed to full effect by Ray Winstone's powerful performance as the foul-mouthed, substance abusing husband, who beats and verbally abuses his pregnant wife (Kathy Burke, who is also very impressive in her role). But aside from being just a pointless exercise in violent filmmaking, Nil By Mouth explores the deeper issues of poverty and one man's inability ...  Read the complete review

Nil by Mouth is a powerful drama set in South London, mainly centreing around the fortunes of Ray (Ray Winstone), the violent husband of Val (Kathy Burke) and Val's drug addict brother, Billy (Charlie Creed-Miles). The film is the directorial debut of Gary Oldman. The film deals with some serious domestic problems in the case of domestic violence carried out by Ray on his wife, and the wider impact of this on the entire family and all of those that know them. One other slightly less highlighted issue underlined in the film is the affect that Billy's habit has on not only his own life but other members of family, due to his dishonest ...  Read the complete review

Without a doubt, 'Nil By Mouth' is one of the darkest, bleakest, and most powerful films to emerge in the UK in recent years. Set in the vast concrete netherworld of the council estates that line the Old Kent Road in South London, this is a film that cuts through the lies and the consensus that denies that class and poverty still exist in this country. Despite all the hype about New Britain and the Millenium, this is a film that goes for the jugular in showing us a side of life that the tourists never see and which the media like to pretend doesn't exist any more. For a while back in the middle '80's I lived on these estates, which made the ...  Read the complete review