TinsHeadline Touches You

ThedevilChoose When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

Nayan Gough A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

LouE15 I loved this somewhat undemanding show when it aired, but reading some of the inane comments in the reviews has made me want to write one. If you're easily offended I politely suggest you skip this review. Can it ever be overstated, how rare it still is to find a British detective drama – or indeed any other kind of British drama whatsoever – in which the lead is played by a black man? Or, for that matter, where the thorny subject of racism is tackled, incidentally, and with humour and generosity? I nearly fell off my chair laughing at one user comment that such issues don't exist in the area in which this show is set – qualified by adding something to the effect of: not, at least, on a large scale. No, I'm sure… But there's a 'blindness' that operates in reality in Britain: unless you have racism forced on your attention, it's very easy to persuade yourself that it doesn't exist any more in our modern and "reformed" society. The reality remains, silenced, I suspect, by the very PC movement that sought to address it, in the glass ceilings, the lack of cultural understanding, the "sleepwalking our way to segregation" as Trevor Philips quite rightly puts it.So, how refreshing and wonderful to find this series, which I thoroughly enjoyed, even whilst fully aware of its occasional clichés, its slightly old fashioned style and dodgy regional accents, and its unsurprising romance. Who cares? – none of these haven't already been spotted before in almost every British detective drama, so all the more reason for this series to be taken on its own merits. The chief of these is the charismatic Don Gilet in the lead role of Nicky Cole, the London copper cast, through his brave but impolitic actions, into the career wilderness (and punishment) of a night shift in the police force in the north. The setting happens to be Newcastle, a rare chance to see a great-looking city, but it could be anywhere. He encounters a world often unwilling to make the necessary leap of faith, to believe in him at face value and on the basis of his record. So, like many men and women in his position, he must prove himself by working twice as hard, being twice as good at his job as everybody around him. Some of this is racism; some is good old-fashioned "you ain't from round here" suspicion of the new. But one of the pleasures of this series (beyond its making it to the screen at all!) is that this issue is still a sub-plot. Taken out of the mix, it's just an engaging police drama.Another reviewer at the opposite end of the spectrum commented cynically on the 'PC' nature of the show, how it ticked equal opportunity boxes. In the eye of the beholder… But again, can I stress how highly unusual it is that this show got made at all? Wow, only imagine, if TV shows were really commissioned principally with a desire to address equal opportunities and represent Britain as it really is! I liked this show very much indeed, and strongly recommend it, not as a diatribe on racism but as a very enjoyable entry in the long police drama canon. Some suspension of disbelief may be required, but we're all used to that, right?

Tongilulu Given how much crime drama is on TV, I don't know how programs avoid using genre formulae and "cliches" - but this show has a charm of its own. I was pleasantly surprised by it.The charm is due in large part to Don Gilet, who provides an attractive focal point. Clichés though they are, I like the "chalk and cheese" relationship with the old-timer in uniform; the urbane at-home mentor; and the sexual tension with the lawyer (although I like the flirting with the policewoman better).Themes of corruption and racism add some edge to the mix.I've only been through Newcastle a few times - but the night settings not only add to the mood of this show, they also give the city an allure that might not come across so well in daylight.We've just had the first series here in Australia. I hope it continues.

Steve Gough I normally wouldn't have touched this with someone else's dirty barge-pole but due to family circumstances ended up watching the whole first series.It ticks all the right boxes for contemporary BBC TV drama at the moment, so it's set in the North of England and the hero is a marginalised black man. Nicky is a good cop who has done noble but unpopular things in London and been exiled to the night-shift in faraway Newcastle, struggling to stay morally and chemically clean in a profession in which nobody trusts or respects him. Although unfortunately male, in order to meet the BBC's obligation of comprehensive diversity he also shoulders many of the burdens of a typical, English single mother by raising the son of his dead drug-dealer brother and junkie sister-in-law. It's an everyday story of everyday people you probably recognise from your own family. The series also features a statutory number of the limited group of actors guaranteed endless regular work populating BBC drama series.I will damn it with the faint praise that it wasn't too bad. There are plenty of irritating aspects like the hero's entirely platonic older male housemate, a sort of Caribbean Obi-Wan Kenobi. Each week he dispenses wisdom to Nicky and his proxy son on issues as profound as the importance of making your own carnival costumes and wearing them in the drizzle on deserted English beaches while no-one else is looking.The acting isn't all bad, and the hero has a lively relationship with a uniformed policewoman who shares the night shift with him. His love interest is therefore a legal aid solicitor played by Dervla Kirwin, who seems to appear mainly because the BBC is contractually obliged to give her work. The relationship is ludicrous and unconvincing, not least because she was clearly heavily pregnant during filming, and performs with all the subtlety of a barrage balloon wrapped in a cheap red overcoat that fools nobody. Her character has lines in every episode but has no active part in most of the stories, and for reasons obvious to no-one becomes Nicky's lover.Everything important happens at night and is framed and lit to look like film, to give Newcastle the rain-slick and neon-lit character of late 80s action movies starring Eddie Murphy. This is pretty much the house style at the BBC these days, cutting their cloth to ape the US TV shows that the production teams obviously envy but that BBC schedulers piously refuse to broadcast at prime-time in favour of home-grown clones. A conspiracy within the UK media industry maintains a sad and depressing myth that these stunted six-week outings are much "better" than full 22 episode seasons of shows with decent writing, higher production values and charismatic on-screen talent.55 Degrees North is a passable but parochial series which also happens to be a very good indication of why millions of UK homes are switching to satellite TV broadcasters where they can find wall-to-wall US imports.

davideo-2 STAR RATING:*****Unmissable****Very Good***Okay**You Could Go Out For A Meal Instead*Avoid At All CostsDetective Nicky Cole (Don Gilet) has moved from London to Newcastle after blowing the whistle on a corrupt colleague.Every week,he solves a different case.An underlying theme of the show seems to be the institutional racism that seems to go on in the police force on the Tyneside,originally highlighted in the first episode with the arrival of a new black copper.I could go in to great depth in to discussing how average I thought the show is,but ultimately,I have to admit my OLS above really hits it in a nutshell.Despite the huge effort the actors and writers appear to be going to in order to make it otherwise,the show just fails to everreally come together and be engaging or absorbing in any way.Despite a few nice touches (a thrilling chase scene in the first episode,some slick visuals,nice dialogue and a cool soundtrack),the illusion that you are not watching just a very average show is just never marred.Surprisingly,Tim Healy never made a guest appearance in any of the episodes.Oh well,there might be another season.Lets hope it's better.***