Nerdly » Spirit of Independence Film Festival 2024: ‘Reputation’ Review

04th Sep2024

Spirit of Independence Film Festival 2024: ‘Reputation’ Review

by Kevin Haldon

Stars: James Nelson Joyce, Kyle Rowe, Olivia Frances Brown, Robyn Sass, Kru Lundy, Andrew Purcell | Written by Martin Law, Dean Gregson, Jordan Derbyshire | Directed by Martin Law

Reputation is the kind of movie that reminds audiences that we Brits know better than anyone how to craft and tell a story that’s honest, raw, real and above all else relatable. More often than not we look to the Ken Loachs and Shane Meadows of the world for that slice of grim reality and for me those guys were at their best when starting out, which has always prompted me to keep an eye on emerging directors from my homeland and keep an open mind when going in.

Now, in Martin Law, I have a new name to add to my list of: “I’m keeping an eye on this guy”. After having the chance to check out his debut feature Reputation. A movie that could easily serve as somewhat of a cautionary tale to the young, often forgotten men that exist in every city and town of the U.K. A movie that much like This is England or Sweet Sixteen takes a true tried and tested blueprint of a movie and cuts back on bells and whistles to make way for perfect casting, bold editing and some lingering shots that help to masterfully execute director Martin Law’s vision flawlessly. Perfect movie? Not exactly but its weakness surprisingly empowers its strengths.

Reputation doesn’t mess about as we jump right into the life of Wes and his partner Zoe. They have a young child and all Wes wants to do is provide for his fledgling family. Of course, to do this Wes has taken to a little bit of drug dealing and has found himself in charge after his friend Tommy was sent to prison. The day we meet everyone is the day of Tommy’s release and he is looking to make up for lost time with regards to an aggressive expansion of the territory. What follows is a period of about three days that start off hopeful but due to the violent and unpredictable actions of Tommy, things rapidly descend into chaos leaving Wes to fix the mess, whilst trying to appease his fiancé, hang on to his mates and not disappoint his dad. You know… A Tuesday in Liverpool.

As you can see we aren’t reinventing the wheel in terms of plot. Although some surprising story beats are welcome moments but the heart of the movie is in its execution and its willingness to let the cast breathe, which leads to two or three truly outstanding performances.

James Nelson Joyce, as Wes, brings an incredibly authentic, nuanced and all-to-familiar sense to this role. A bit of a scally but has his loved one’s best interests at heart. His chemistry with both the fiancé and Tommy is palpable at times and makes those hard-to-watch moments, really bloody hard to watch but his timing can be such that in those darkly comic moments, he snaps the tension easily. I can see Joyce picking up nominations for this role and he absolutely deserves them. This role was a perfect chance to show his range and leave an impression on this reviewer.

Kyle Rowe as Tommy is the perfect dancing partner for Joyce. This guy is an absolute wild card in all the best ways. Think of the likes of Tom Hardy in his more strong silent roles like The Take, a coiled spring that you just have no clue what could happen next, a man you could imagine kneeing you in the ribs as he performs CPR. That’s what Rowe is doing here. I found him somewhat charming but under the surface is an absolute bastard. It’s hard not to love this portrayal in the sense of an actor smashing the role but I can say with confidence that Tommy is a proper shit heel.

Olivia Frances Brown is really a breath of fresh air as fiancé Zoe and while used sparingly throughout the runtime, she always seems to hit the screen just when we as viewers need to take a moment. Cheeky shoutout to Robyn Sass too, pulling double duty as sisters Tasha and Becky. Doing a better job than I thought because it wasn’t till the closing credits I realised they were the same actress.

I think what Martin Law has done with Reputation (his first feature by the way) is damn impressive. He clearly knows these characters and this world, he is able to make the nothing budget work in his favour to bring us a gritty realistic slice of these lives. The use of the news story about the child that has been murdered feels like something ripped from today’s news feed, which is something that really sucks but it’s an all too common theme in England right now. While we don’t shy away from violence, Law deals with it in a way that is visceral but never gratuitous. The score is on point too which can often make or break a movie like this, one that depends on the effectiveness of less is more.

I believe that Reputation is one hell of a calling card for this director and is reminiscent of some of my favourite British directors earlier works. I look forward to Law’s next outing and look forward to seeing how he can finesse his skillset. Everything Reputation does right, it does it VERY right. I hope to see a leap from Law on the next project, as much as I loved this, I could see a ton more potential in this film for sure. However given the budget on offer, this was a blinding flick worth your time.