Filth - Cinema Review

Filth couldn't be more true to its name, there is depravity in the very pores of this film but if that doesn't turn you away you'll find a brutally brilliant drama that will knock as much out of you as it does its characters. Based on Irvine Welsh's 1998 novel, the film is a shameless comedy and unflinching character drama that focuses on a man named Bruce Robertson, a thoroughly corrupt detective who appears to be pulling the strings on his colleagues in the run up to a potential promotion.

The film naturally has a twisted sense of humour and the overall atmosphere is undoubtedly the work of the man behind Trainspotting. That said, there is a sophistication present which comes in the form of Bruce's wife Carole who, whilst corrupt in her own way, seems to live in a noir-style fantasy world that couldn't be further from the grimy Scottish streets we see Bruce and his colleagues patrol. Slowly the film becomes less about the promotion and more about Bruce's mental state as he grapples with drug addictions, sexual frustrations and his own tragic past coming back to haunt him.

Filth is loaded with depth for the characters and for all its eccentricities it portrays a cast of painfully real, complex and damaged people. James McAvoy is potent as the protagonist Bruce and the film is almost worth seeing for his performance alone. Thankfully his role is flanked by some other excellent actors, effective pacing and very strong writing. I'll admit i've not read the book so perhaps some flaws in the translation are lost on me but Filth gripped me almost immediately and whilst undeniably hard to watch in places, stop watching i absolutely could not.

To delve much deeper is to spoil the best of what Filth has to offer so i'll simply finish on a recommendation and state that this sordid feast of a film is far more than its shallow appearance would suggest.