Twin Town
Director: Kevin Allen
Screenplay: Kevin Allen, Paul Durden
Starring: Rhys Ifans, Llyr Ifans, Dougray Scott, Dorien Thomas, William Thomas
Year: 1997
Language: English
UK rental release: August 2002
As today is a special day for the patron saint of one of the UK's countries, I felt it necessary to pick a film from my neighbouring state in honour of St David. Also, I have an affiliation to Wales from living there through my teenage years and the connections in my family history (including the newest addition to the family, my niece Harriet), so it seems right to step over the border for a brief visit and pick a key film from the land of the dragon.
Before I start this review I do need to point out that this picture has split audiences in the past; those taking a negative approach through either the breadth of swearing throughout, or lack of cultural respect (or both), I ask you to watch this indie comedy with an open mind and appreciate it's bravery, tuning in to the fact that a lot of welsh people aren't offended by this film...in fact, they adore it!
We open on the revving of a car, said vehicle leaping over the camera, then fed a vista of the Swansea coast line. Julian Lewis (Llyr Ifans, welsh TV star for many years) is at the wheel of a stolen vehicle, careering around the streets of the Swansea suburb of Mount Pleasant, taking the steep cobbled roads with no fear. In the passenger seat is his brother Jeremy (Rhys Ifans, Mr. Nice, Enduring Love) screaming in enjoyment of Julian's maverick driving skills. They're a couple of tearaways, unrelenting of the law, taking life at their own pace.
A brief knock on a parked Mercedes-Benz riles up corrupt police detective Terry (Dougray Scott, Enigma, TV film United), an antagonistic individual with an eye on the Lewis brothers. His partner, Greyo (Dorien Thomas, another welsh TV star) is his more sensible, cautious partner, but still finds amusement in the damage to Terry's car.
But the inevitable clash between the two duo's comes to pass with a nearing dilemma. The Lewis brother's father, Fatty (Huw Ceredig) has taken on some labouring work at a nearby rugby club. Club owner, Bryn Cartwright (William Thomas of TV series Gavin & Stacey fame) is getting him cheap and wants his roof work completed sharpish. He adores his club, and he pumps a good chunk of his cash and love into it...but he's not all generosity and heart. An accident involving Fatty falling from the club roof starts a spiralling plot which will bring all of our protagonists into a pot of revenge and resentment.
Bryn won't pay any compensation for Fatty's fall, which angers the Lewis boys. When they take this up with Cartwright and come up short they take an alternative approach, setting up a prank to embarrass Bryn's daughter Bonny (Jenny Evans). This sets off a chain reaction of retaliations between them, with Bryn employing Terry and Greyo in his share of the revenge. As each act gets darker and more twisted, inevitable danger is afoot, leading to an event that could change the lives the brothers forever.
As mentioned above, there is a mixed reaction to Twin Town. This, I feel, is unfair but I'm not one to alter a personal opinion of a spectator, as I have strong views of my own. But, if you are new to the film I advise to take a step back, open a beer or pour a wine, and make sure you keep a fresh mind in watching what is, clearly, a great black comedy.
This genre applies perfectly to the piece, as there are vibrant differences between the moments of out-and-out humour and surprising deep drama that, at times, jump up out of nowhere. It does have a disjointed feel at parts, which actually tends to benefit the frenetic bleak comedy and odd skits between key story moments. Please remember, however, that this is a low-budget, small film with local talent in front and behind the camera (including, then newcomer, Rhys Ifans) so the deft care in balancing the light and the dark is where the film truly succeeds, through some choice comedy vignettes (especially the delightfully hilarious cameo from Keith Allen) and thanks to some great directing choices including the managing of the relentless, controversial script.
One half of the writing team, Paul Durden, is someone I am familiar with through a friend of mine when I lived near Swansea. During my days as a rapper, with my "partners-in-rhyme", we would regularly hire out a rehearsal room that he owned, called The Purgatory, which we'd jam in until the early hours. One time he popped by and, through a beer influenced conversation, I vaguely remember him telling me how the film came about. However, if I'm wrong, Paul - I apologise for my error...this was many years ago, and many beers ago too!
Anyhow, as I recall the story was initially penned by said local Swansea artist and entrepreneur, Mr Paul Durden, with the original intention of releasing it as a book. Taking into account some of the rumours of corrupt officers around Swansea (part of the controversy of the film's release was down to the local law enforcers reaction to this) and the frequent car theft that still goes on in the area today, of which famously made Swansea the joy-riding capital of Europe in the mid-90s. A good friend to Paul, Kevin Allen, felt that the tale had real strength but belonged to the big screen instead, and suggested that he and Paul re-build the story into a script format, of which he would direct. With some restructuring they formed the unique screenplay that has been pushed into Wales' most successful film to date.
This exposure was a great platform for some previously unrecognised Welsh talent. Casting many local TV stars (most of which have taken a turn on the Celtic equivalent of Channel 4, S4C) there is an evident homegrown feel to the picture. Even the creative team chanced in front of the lens briefly: Paul Durden cameo's as a rude taxi driver near the start of the picture, and Kevin Allen appears as a TV reporter.
But, the real heroes are the real life brother's Llyr and Rhys Ifans. In a tale that has numerous leads, they were rightfully chosen as the poster boys. Their sibling-ship seeps through effortlessly, leaving them to play with their characters with ease, and breathing a likeability to two dysfunctional lads who, on paper, you would find difficult to find affiliation with. Even though, there are some blurred morals to the story for all the roles at hand, you still side a little with the Lewis brothers, and this is due to a great performance from them both. At the film's release, it was jointly felt that these two were destined for bigger things...we've seen the growing success of Rhys Ifans over the years, but I think it's unfortunate that Llyr hasn't been as lucky.
There is one more character that I have briefly mentioned but not fully covered yet...Mr Potty Mouth! If you are easily offended by swearing, you may find Twin Town hard to stomach. If you can bypass the language, however, you'll find real character. Yet, it's important to realise that there is some relevance to the swearing. Some of the cast, including Brian Hibbard (lead singer of the 80's acapella group The Flying Pickets, who only recently passed away in June last year) who plays king of karaoke, Dai Reese, have stated that such frequency of swear words is natural in some area of Wales (I can vouch for this, with my own experiences) so in effect, you could say that it's a realistic, cultural rendition. Also, the placing of the swear words was even discussed and argued at times during production. Choosing the correct moment in a sentence to slip in the "F-word" could change the rhythm of each line's delivery. This is noticeable at points, as the dialogue does tend to hold an iambic pentameter feel in parts, so without the heavy swearing the silent character of the film's overall language would be non-existent.
In fact, as you'll see from this article from two years ago, Twin Town has joined the accolades of swearing royalty due to it's heavy use of expletives. And, when you see the flicks who share this blaspheming neighbourhood you'll find it's in the company of some fantastic films, such as Nil By Mouth, Reservoir Dogs and Goodfellas - so, I suppose it's not that bad to have a vulgar mouth after all!
This picture has been ignored and blasted by many, which is a real shame. It's a great example of a true 90's British comedy drama, with little filtering and a bravery that outshines most of a similar ilk. Over the years, it's evolved into a Welsh cult film classic, and I hope that it retains such status on a wider scale across the UK. But for now, it sits atop it's throne in Cymru which is its rightful place.
Happy St David's Day!
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