ultra violence

For my occasional delight and relief from the real world you cant beat dome ultra violence. The difference between violent films and ultra violence is in the eye of the beholder but usually means close up and high quality images. Ones that don't look like they are made of plasticine and tomato ketchup.

One example would be the first Deadpool movie. This ultra violence would include the shootings on the bridge for example, exploding heads and following bullet paths. One scene Deadpool finds he is running low on bullets , so waits for three bad guys to line up and shoots all three with one bullet. The bullet going through heads from one to next.

In my head this slightly over the top, almost comic book type violence is off a quality to be admired as much as reviled. I am a fan of conventional horror films and the more darker comic book movies. I love the dark knight era of Batman for example, suicide squad and the afore mentioned Deadpool.

I would also add the Kingsman films and Tin Star for occasional high quality blood and guts. With tin star its more occasional but still fun.

3 hour films with a stick and a furry toy as major characters leaves me cold. This darkness led me to The gangs of London. Very dark, very brutal and a serious rough ride through gang warfare in London. I did partly start watching as saw one of my favourite actors in it but unfortunately he didn't live very long.

Its hard to recommend a series like this without giving too much away but here goes. The story is based around one of London's main gangs losing its head and his two sons taking over. One son becomes defacto leader while one is in the background. Their mother also is a major factor as part of the respected and feared family group.

There are occasional flash backs of when the father tried to teach his sons the way of the gangs, even trying to initiate them by killing someone when barely teenagers.

An undercover policeman infiltrates the gang and soon its not clear if he's in too deep as he tries to maintain his cover. The beatings and murders soon begin, various weapons used for best effect. Gypsy gangs get involved as well and a side story features one of the gang fleeing after a badly planned and un-sanctioned murder.

Again without giving too much away, the assault on the farm house as hired mercenaries try to find the running gypsy is one of the best executes shootouts I have ever seen. A lot of this is down to the modern abilities of film crews to have cameras that can track and movement and from any angle. So the fights move in sequence from one person to another, rather then a wide shot of it all happening. So when someone falls through a roof you follow him through.

This sequence also include an incredible exploding person but I will leave details for anyone who wants to watch. I found myself disappointed by the twist at the very end of the final episode, but enjoyed it all till then. It was a box set which I couldn't resist watching in two sessions.

Its pure escapism , its not the Godfather or Goodfellas. Its very, very violent, very bleak and each episode looks like a movie in its own right. The stunt work and special effects would rival some established movies and unlike the afore mentioned stick and furry toy movie things happen that you can follow.

The slightly disappointing ending leaves a chance for a further series but personally I would leave it be as a standalone series.