Shank

Just when you thought grimy gang drama had run out of steam, along comes this dystopian variation, set in a recession-ravaged London 2015. Punching above its budget, there is something grimly credible in Shank's city of shanty slums, scavengers and out of control violence. Fourteen-year-old Junior, (played brilliantly by newcomer Kedar Williams-Stirling) is on the run from a rival crew and out for revenge after they kill one of his. But after an explosive opening, it soon slips into the familiar formula of Kidulthood et al: 24 hours of mephedrone-paced escalating violence. And like its predecessors, Shank (teen slang for knifing) gives teenagers a lot of what they want – sex, booze, video game graphics, beatings – before administering an earnest, last-minute dose of morality, which, weirdly, is enough to get the film the endorsement of the Damilola Taylor Trust.