Film Review with Robert Mann – Other Side of the Game

30th November 2010

Other Side of the Game ***½

London based crime movies are ten a penny in the British film industry and films featuring characters who are drug dealers are every bit as common so coming up with anything even remotely original in the genre is hardly an easy thing to achieve.
Every now and then, though, such a thing does happen and it isn’t necessarily some big name filmmaker that pulls it off. For instance, while currently on release London Boulevard, which boasts quite a few big names, is stinking up cinema screens across the country, upstart filmmakers Sav Akyüz and Lajaune Lincoln – whose 35mm graduation film, Splitwigs (the title of which has become the name of their production company), provided them with the springboard to produce several more short films and who have both directed music videos and developed several feature length scripts – have both written and directed Other Side of the Game, a crime drama that actually does manage to bring something new to the fold. Made for just £18,000 (a mere fraction of what London Boulevard likely cost to make) and shot on location in London, ‘Other Side of the Game’ first screened at the 2010 Raindance Film Festival under the Kodak Young Talent banner and isn’t being awarded a cinema release, instead premiering online.

Small time drug dealer Tony Cole (Simon Paul Sutton) is seeking a fresh start and a better future. Although Tony, in tandem with best friend Steve (Ben ‘Doc Brown’ Smith), has fallen into drug-dealing as a route to an easy income, spending the last decade of his life supplying cocaine to the capital’s moneyed elite, he has ambitions to set up his own business and thereby legitimise himself, he believes, in the eyes of his well-to-do girlfriend Claudia (Ayse Tezel). But not only are Tony’s plans afforded cold reception from those who view him as little more than a drug pusher, a shock event also puts his life in danger – forcing him to sink deeper into a sordid underworld in a desperate attempt escape his fate. Finding himself accused of both theft and murder he is left with just 12 hours to come up with the cash to save his skin.

One of the key things that sets Other Side of the Game apart from so many other crime dramas is in the way it portrays a very different side to the world of drug dealing than what we are used to seeing. The principal characters here are not your average lowlife drug dealers and certainly don’t conform to the typical stereotypes of such characters. Rather they come across more like everyday guys, Tony seeming honest and decent and genuinely not wanting to do what he does while Steve is perhaps a more willing criminal but still not coming across as a completely bad individual. Some might criticise the representation of drug dealers as not so bad people and it could be questioned whether or not such a portrayal is actually realistic but from a filmic context such a portrayal makes for more interesting characters and consequently a more interesting story. The fact that the film starts at the end meaning that we know exactly where events are headed also gives us a differing perspective on the story as it happens, which also proves very interesting. The writing here is of a pretty good standard, the dialogue not especially memorable but certainly authentic sounding and the plot being very interesting – up to a point. About 40 minutes in the story takes a slight turn towards the predictable and the moment gangsters enter the picture the story becomes somewhat less interesting and more obvious. This isn’t to say that the film ceases to be engaging but certainly that much of what distinguishes the film earlier on is lost. This move towards more familiar territory detracts from the film a bit but not enough to diminish the quality of writing that is on display, both Sav Akyüz and Lajaune Lincoln showing themselves to be quite accomplished screenwriters. They are also very accomplished at the practical side of filmmaking as well, here delivering some very effective visuals. Despite it appearing as though the film was shot on video – the entire image is always in focus – a format that can create very dull looking imagery, many of the shortcomings of video are not evident here, instead the video look proving rather effective. The visuals here are never dull looking, Akyüz and Lincoln crafting numerous striking shots that are well framed and feature good composition as well delivering some very fine looking cinematography that takes bland everyday environments – the film focuses on less recognisable parts of London – and makes them quite visually appealing. Credit for the overall film can’t just go to Akyüz and Lincoln themselves, though, but also the cast. The acting here is of a pretty good standard, the cast including in addition to those aforementioned the suitably sinister Emile Jansen as gangster boss Frank and Bill Fellows as corrupt cop Dempsey. The real standout among the cast is Simon Paul Sutton whose performance makes us genuinely believe that Tony is a decent guy and almost come to actually care about him as a character, something that makes his turn to the nasty side towards the end quite harrowing in some ways. We see that he is being driven by desperation but the fact that the character turns bad is a shame nonetheless and the emotion that Sutton puts into the role makes the character completely convincing all the way. So, Other Side of the Game is a very strong debut for Sav Akyüz and Lajaune Lincoln. It is a film that shows them to be very capable as both writers and directors and one that does (to an extent) provide a fresh angle on a very familiar theme. Sure, it has its flaws but when such a small film as this can so completely own a big film like London Boulevard it really does show true filmmaking talent. If you want to see what a good London crime movie looks like check this out when it premieres online.

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Other Side of the Game premieres on VOD platforms at Indie Movies Online on December 7th 2010. The Indie Movies Online website can be viewed here:
http://www.indiemoviesonline.com/

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Review by Robert Mann BA (Hons)

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