Attack the Block

It's common in monster movies set in a city to have a gang of thugs at some point, who threaten the hero's life or just interfere with his attempts to get to safety. In Attack the Block, the gang of thugs are the heroes of the piece, and I do not use the word "hero" lightly here.

Our first glimpse of Moses and his gang comes in the first scene, when they mug a nurse who (unbeknownst to any of them) lives in the same council housing block they do. When creatures straight out of the shadows of nightmare begin falling from the sky and attacking their home, however, they become more than just a gang - they're the human race's first line of defense.

Damn few monster movies have the message "actions have consequences". This one does, but it's not preachy (making it rarer still). But I digress.

Back to the mention of the word "hero" up at the start of this. The blog Film Critic Hulk's review said it so well that I'll just paste the relevant section below:

http://filmcrithulk.wordpress.com/2011/04/27/hulk-review-attack-the-block-a-flat-out-masterpiece/

WHAT WOULD IT TAKE FOR YOU TO PICK UP A GUN, SWORD, WHATEVER THE HELL, AND RUN OUT IN FRONT TO DEFEND YOUR FRIENDS? TO LEGITIMATELY SACRIFICE YOURSELF.

… THINK ABOUT IT.

IT SOMETHING PEOPLE SEE TIME AND TIME AGAIN IN MOVIES AND YET IT SOMETHING WE NEVER REALLY QUESTION WITH OUR OWN LIVES. WHAT WOULD IT TAKE FOR YOU TO
DEFEND YOUR FRIENDS? THE MOST OBVIOUS EXAMPLE IS THE MILITARY. GRANTED, THE MILITARY AND THE REASONS FOR JOINING OFTEN PAINTED IN ROSES. IN BRUTAL HONESTY, LOTS JOIN BECAUSE THEY WANT TO KILL STUFF, IT WAS FORCED ON THEM, OR MOST OFTEN THEY JUST NEED THE MONEY. BUT LOST IN THESE CYNICAL REASONS ARE THE THOUSANDS OF MEN AND WOMEN FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE WHO JOIN TO CONTRIBUTE TO SOMETHING BIGGER THAN THEMSELVES. IT’S HEADY, HONORABLE STUFF. SOMETHING THAT THE POSH, LIBERALLY MINDED WORLD OF HULK AND EVERYONE ELSE FORGET. SACRIFICE = REAL. BUT IF OFTEN TAKE A FLAWED, INTERESTING, AND DEEPLY WOUNDED KIND OF PERSONALITY TO GET TO THAT PLACE OF SACRIFICE. IT RARELY A WHOLLY NOBLE PURSUIT.

AND HULK HATE TO BREAK IT TO YOU, BUT YOU ALSO MEET A LOT OF THESE HEROIC PERSONALITIES IN INNER CITIES.

AND OFTEN THEY IN GANGS.

This is a movie about sacrifice, and because of that, this is a movie about real heroes and real heroism. And it's a nail-biting, adrenaline-pumping story that is one of the best movies to come out this year. If you live near a theatre that has it, please go see it; if it does well enough maybe we'll get fewer remakes of things that were done right the first time, and more movies with originality and substance.