The phrase "Home Invasion" has entered the British lexicon. By the time I'm old, we'll all be talking like George Bush. This film is a home-invasion flick for the British hoodie generation. It must've had one of the shortest cinema runs ever. I saw it listed at the cinemas in TimeOut London on 7th Sept (interview day), looked for it at the cinemas, didn't see it anywhere, then saw it on DVD in Blockbuster one day.
This film has good acting and a basic plot. The cast is largely unknown. Tom Kane, who plays a role akin to Krug in The Last House on the Left, is a convincing gang-leader-cum-psychopath. The other kids are less temperamental but look up to him. The opening scene shows a British middle-class couple cutting each other at dinner with snide comments. This is different from the usual strategy of making the victims as likeable as possible. You might even laugh a bit when this irritating couple get bound and gagged at first. However, any Schadenfreude should be gone by the time that the mother is raped (off-screen).
It's a short film and it could've been even shorter. The decision to introduce some younger kids was a poor one. They come in too late in the film and I find it hard to believe that kids that young would not be scared by this, even if we are in inner-city London. The very ending is the best part when the father gets his terrible revenge. We see his inner beast come out in much the same way that the nice doctor in The Last House on the Left becomes a murderer. There is a nice touch when he rings the police and gets an unhelpful response (a lot of people can relate).
I give this 5/10. It's not bad for a short film and gives you a kick of violence but it's nothing revolutionary. Ashley Chin may have a decent career ahead of him.
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