Nil By Mouth (1997)

Director: Gary Oldman
Starring: Ray Winstone, Kathy Burke, Charley Creed-Miles, Laila Morse, Jamie Foreman
Certificate: 18
Genre: Drama
Awards: None

Nil By Mouth is a british film made by Gary Oldman about a working class family and their relationships towards various drugs and alcohol. Ray (Winstone) is an abusive husband which causes his life to spiral downwards whilst his brother in law, Billy (Creed-Miles) is a drug addict who also falls into deeper and deeper holes.

The film is grim and dark and unpleasant, as would be expected. Most of the characters are unlikeable and even terrifying, yet the don't lack charisma making them seem much more real. The main arc of the story considering Ray and wife Valerie (Burke) feels incredibly raw and allows the viewer to feel invested. Billy's story is a little bit more of a lackluster yet still stands as a subplot.

If you are familiar with the darker side of british social realism you have probably seen films like this already but at the time it stood out as something different. Performances are great and well directed, Nil By Mouth still might not be for everyone.

****Good