Starred Up, it’s another prison movie, innit. Well, that’s true but this one comes with a few twists that elevate it from the rest of the crowd. First of all, it’s based on Jonathan Asser’s experiences working as a therapist at Wandsworth Prison in the UK. This is something you’re going to sense almost right away. The movie doesn’t have a certain narrative that’s trying to push down your throat. It’s not looking to sell you a hero’s or antihero’s journey. It’s just telling you how things are, innit. Secondly, despite the gloominess of the subject material, there’s a surprising amount of humor here. Sometimes it’s black, sometimes it’s subtle, and sometimes it’s bizarre. However, it’s almost always there.
I mean, humor is one of the few coping mechanisms you have at your disposal when you find yourself in a difficult situation. Although the term difficult might be an understatement of the century in the context of the story. Starred Up is a movie about Eric Love, a young criminal who’s about to make his debut in the big boys’ prison. No more juvie for him, it’s time for the real deal. And Eric, as a prospective career criminal wears this as a badge of honor. Starred up actually means you’ve “graduated” from juvenile detention facilities to actual prisons. Eric is more than ready for this change. However, he’s not ready for a couple of surprises that are patiently waiting for him.
Some of them are good and some of them are bad, just like everything else in life. The only difference is your maneuvering space is reduced to almost a zero once you’re in. And second chances are hard to come by. In the lead role, we find one of the UK’s generational talents, young Jack O’Connell. Man, I remember it like it was yesterday, seeing him in Eden Lake and thinking how this kid is going to be going places. And indeed he did. Apart from him, it’s always nice to see both Rupert Friend (Homeland, Hitman) and Ben Mendelsohn (Animal Kingdom, Rogue One). The director is David Mackenzie who gave us several excellent movies like Hell or High Water and Outlaw King.
Starred Up was filmed in Northern Island, more specifically in HM Prison Crumlin Road and HM Prison Maze. It would appear that all prisons in this region have the same layout because I distinctly remember this one from The Escapist. More important than the setting are the people we’re going to be meeting. And they’re exactly that, people, despite the fact they’ve done some terrible things. Character development was spot on, fleshing out individuals who clearly have some issues but are still complex and even perhaps capable of change. We’ll also learn a lot about prison slang words. For example, straightener means a hit on somebody, double bubble means two for one, and mug off to show disrespect.
Ultimately, Starred Up highlights the sore need for the prison system overhaul not just in the UK but across the world. This is a subject that almost inevitably pops up every time we talk about prison movies. The counterarguments are almost non-existent and usually come in a form of a single Norwegian asshole whose name I’m not going to mention. He’s just one guy and we need to look at this problem from a much broader perspective. Until we do, prisons will be what they currently are, places where we throw away things we don’t want to deal with. If this seems a bit inhumane, it’s because it fucking is.
Just to be perfectly clear, I’m not arguing to just let inmates out on the streets. I’m arguing for an increase in education, therapy, and other things that might help rehabilitate at least some of the offenders. However, in a world where all of these things are not so easy to get for ordinary people who haven’t done anything wrong, getting to those who did is an almost impossible mission. I guess that’s just how things be, innit. Finally, if you’re looking for movies like Starred Up, I recommend you check out Animal Factory starring Willem Dafoe and Edward Furlong. Innit.
Director: David Mackenzie
Writer: Jonathan Asser
Cast: Jack O’Connell, Ben Mendelsohn, Rupert Friend, Sam Spruell, Darren Hart, Anthony Welsh
Fun Facts: Kanga is a British slang word for a prison guard stemming from classic nickname Screw which rhymes with Kangaroo of which Kanga is the short form.
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IMDb Link: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2567712/
