December 2023: I'm still reorganizing my profile and that means adding more reviews of the films I've seen not that long ago. This time I went through the year 2022 and I will try to review films I still well. There will be A LOT of horror this time.

Review 27/50

***

If I ever make an ultimate list of my favorite horror films of all time, Attack the Block will be in my top 20, maybe even in top 10. I love this little film so much. I'm sure it's the future classic.

The time is Guy Fawkes Night, the place is South London, the event is alien invasion. The whole film takes place during one fateful night, as we follow a group of teenage delinquents... and their female neighbor they robbed on the street a moment ago.

It just seems that Earth (or at least London!) can be saved only by this unlikely group. The whole film is a tense, thrilling, funny and poignant experience.

Your heart will break seeing John Boyega here and thinking how the Star Wars franchise managed to deprive his stormtrooper character of charisma and depth. His character in Attack the Block, Moses, is such a natural born leader that his sudden heroism doesn't end up cheesy but inspiring. I hope to see Boyega in a similarly intense and layered performance elsewhere.

All the other actors are also great (some of the children probably abandoned acting after this one movie but that's okay, not everyone wants to pursue this career) and they behave in a very authentic manner.

I also have to mention the soundtrack. Made by Steven Price and Basement Jaxx, it combines electronic music with rap music to great effect. What is crucial, the filmmakers edit the footage to the music in some action scenes. This should be the standard but too often I see great music wasted because it is treated like the background noise by the filmmakers. (Sidenote: I don't mention ot often but I am a huge fan of music videos; I think it's an art form that deserves its own database like Letterboxd - so "music video style of editing" is a compliment in my book.)

As to the aliens, this is perfect monster design for my taste - cheap, effective and scary. You have to see it to know what I mean. The scene when Moses runs away from them through the hallway as the intense music matches the pace of editing - so epic! This is why we love movies - to witness powerful moments like that.

This film is an entertaining treasure, with incredible craftsmanship on the budget, believable acting, engaging story of the limited, more personal scope and sweet neon color palette that illustrates the middle-of-the-night atmosphere. It is also a horror film that could introduce the genre to children (you decide for yourself how young they can be), especially as they can identify with young protagonists.

It is also a movie that may provoke discussion about social exclusion and how growing up without many opportunities presents crime as the only attractive option. Again, for younger viewers that may be the introduction to such topics. Attack the Block is a rare example of the movie that is so entertaining, so simple and so smart.