Tower Block

Plot synopsis:
One night in London, the 15-year-old Jimmy (Ralph Laurila) runs through a housing estate begging passersby for help. Everyone ignores him. He enters the condemned Tower Block 31 and finds his way to the top floor, which is the only floor that is still inhabited as the tenants wait to be rehoused. He bangs on doors as the two masked men who have been chasing him appear. The only person who helps him is office worker Becky (Sheridan Smith), but she is beaten to the ground and he is dragged away. The next morning Detective Constable Devlin (Steven Cree) conducts door-to-door enquiries about the previous night's murder, as the boy's body has been found. Nobody will speak to him; not even Becky, who claims her injuries are the result of a mugging.
Three months later, Becky wakes up in her flat next to her colleague Ryan (Jamie Thomas King), with whom she has had a one-night stand following an office party. As they have breakfast, Ryan is suddenly shot in the head through the window. Becky flees into the hallway, along with the other residents, as all the flats have been targeted: young couple Amy (Loui Batley) and Jeff (Michael Legge); Carol (Julie Graham) and her teenaged computer game addict son Daniel (Harry McEntire); chavvy single mother Jenny (Montserrat Lombard); middle-aged former soldier Neville (Ralph Brown) and his wife Violet (Jill Baker); small-time drug dealers Gary (Nabil Elouahabi) and Mark (Kane Robinson); lonely alcoholic Paul (Russell Tovey); and petty criminal Kurtis (Jack O'Connell), who extorts protection money from his neighbours. Amy, Jeff, and Mark are wounded. As well as Ryan, Carol's husband and Jenny's two young children have already been killed by the sniper. Amy too soon succumbs to her injuries despite the best efforts of Violet, who is a first aider. The phones and internet have stopped working. The walls and doors are covered by homemade posters bearing three emoticons. Daniel, who has learned about such things from computer games, says that the sniper knows what he is doing and is using a high-powered military-grade rifle.
The fire escape is exposed to the sniper's gunfire, so they force open the lift door. It is boobytrapped with a shotgun, however, which kills Jeff. Becky, Kurtis, and Paul climb down the lift shaft, but discover the ground-floor exit door has been blocked with a skip and return to the top floor. Jenny suggests the emoticons symbolise the three wise monkeys and that the sniper is targeting them because they let Jimmy be killed and refused to speak to the police about it. She then walks into her flat to be shot dead alongside her children.
The largest of the posters has been stuck on the door of the flat occupied by Gary and Mark. Kurtis forces them to admit that they were the two masked men who chased and beat Jimmy because he had withheld money from them after they used him as a drug courier; they claim they did not mean to kill him. Nevertheless, Kurtis forces them into the flat where the sniper kills both of them.
Believing they can now leave because Jimmy's killers are dead, Carol runs down the fire escape, followed by Daniel. The sniper lets them reach the ground and then kills both of them. It is now obvious that he intends to execute all of them for refusing to help the police. The survivors have now been trapped for two days. They hatch a plan to tie all the building's fire hoses together and for one of them to climb down to the ground from the roof on the far side, where the sniper cannot see. Paul volunteers to go. Violet opens the door to the roof and is killed by another shotgun boobytrap. Becky, Kurtis, and Paul climb to the roof and secure the hoses, and Paul begins to climb down. The sniper, however, shoots the top of the hose until it breaks, and Paul falls to his death. Becky and Kurtis barely manage to get back inside.
As a final act of desperation, the three survivors set fire to the top floor, hoping someone will see the fire and alert the emergency services. They then climb down the lift shaft. Kurtis falls and breaks his leg. Property developer Kevin (Christopher Fulford) and his assistant Eddie (Tony Jayawardena) arrive and spot the flames, but before they can call the fire brigade, the gunman shoots them both at close range. He then enters the building after throwing in a smoke grenade. Becky sneaks out and finds a nail gun in Kevin's pick-up truck. Using this the three survivors manage to subdue the gunman and remove his mask, only to discover it is DC Devlin, who has cracked after endless lack of assistance in the cases he is investigating. After a struggle, Becky kills him with the nail gun and the survivors walk outside with the sound of approaching sirens.

Tags: murder

Review:
Tower Block is a lesson in how to make fine films in single locations with tiny budgets that are character driven, effects-light and based on sharply written simple premises, which are blackly funny but still suspenseful.
Then, one morning several months later, a sniper starts executing them.The stylized title sequence sets the tone of the film with muted colours, camera angles that make heads tilt and an intensity that puts the viewer on edge from the outset.
Each character who survives the initial onslaught is given (some) time to breathe and relationships are hastily forged where previously there has been barely a glance shared on the top floor.The closest Tower Block comes to a star is Sheridan Smith, an actress who made her name in TV (Eyes Down, Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps) and has earned plaudits and gongs on the stage in Legally Blonde and Hedda Gabler.
In Tower Block, Smith states her intention to conquer the big screen, too, with a strong performance as a determined woman forced to lead a clutch of neighbours fighting for survival despite dwindling options and rising tempers.Excellent as she is, Smith shares ownership of the limelight with Jack O'Connell (Eden Lake, Harry Brown) as Kurtis.
If this is anything to go by, next year's Silent Night of the Living Dead could be stunning.Though last night's audience was woefully small, it was a preview screening and the buzz with which the viewers left was palpable and Tower Block is likely to be a film that steadily builds an audience via word of mouth.
It's an exciting, gritty, funny film and, in the current batch of 'films in towers', though it falls short of the virtually flawless The Raid, I suspect it ranks higher than Dredd and positively towers above Man on Ledge and Tower Heist.Tower Block misses perfection for some silly mistakes it is impossible to point out here without giving away plot lines other than to say the final act of violence was three inches the wrong side of cheesy and when a certain character improvises with 'armour', only in the worst moments of Hollywood would it be adequate.
Performances were great (Sheridan Smith as Becky, Jack O'Connell as Kurtis) or good (the rest), but politically correct attempts to cover the cross-cut of the society (different races-genders-ages) have become annoying as they are used in all similar films.Nevertheless, a good and compact film to those fond of thrillers in a limited time and space..
This is fertile ground for writers of mystery, sci-fi, and horror -- hence the proliferation of films set in these often enigmatic structures."Tower Block," the first feature for UK co-directors James Nunn and Ronnie Thompson, focuses on the last remaining residents of the ironically-named Serenity House, a rundown building which is slated for demolition and has been abandoned save for its top floor.
Zombies" which played here at Fantastic Fest immediately following my "Tower Block" screening.Every actor gets kudos for the movie's emotional punch, making it hard to single anyone out.
Rarely have sound effects been used so effectively as a plot device in ways the viewer will discover.This is a classic trapped group in peril piece, set in the narrow, claustrophobic hallways that define the titular tower block.
In the end, that's why "Tower Block" exceeds expectations.What makes the high-rise building fodder for freaky films?
The film will also probably only appeal to a British audience due to it's setting, characters and dialogue.Overall 'Tower Block' is an average thriller but it's still enjoyable due to it's interesting and original premise and the fairly good acting.
3 months after witnessing the death of a teenager, the residents of the top floor of a tower block awaiting demolition find their reluctance to talk to the Police coming back to haunt them when an unseen sniper starts picking off anyone who unwittingly goes near a window.
Sheridan Smith (Gavin and Stacey) and Jack O'Connell (Skins) head a uniformly excellent cast in this taut British thriller that doesn't skimp on the blood or the depiction of the true cost of looking the other way when someone's in need and you could help them - but don't, because you're too scared or complacent to do so..
Derivative and largely formulaic thriller, but nevertheless one that remains suspenseful and compelling throughout the entire running time thanks to the raw & gritty atmosphere and a handful of extremely brutal shock-moments.
Reminiscent to the other recent British flick "Attack the Block" in terms of tone & social setting, "Tower Block" takes place in a pauperized and crime-infested big city suburb where people abandoned all hope for prosperity long time ago already and desperately avoid every type of contact with fellow human beings.
In case you want to seek out more "serial sniper-killer" movies after this, I warmly recommended the almighty "Dirty Harry" but also the more obscure "Two-Minute Warning", "Targets" and "The Deadly Tower".
Life goes on until the tower block is under the eye of a sniper and is killing everyone.It's the first attempt of UK co-directors James Nunn and Ronnie Thompson and they succeeded in their mission.
Not only you wanted to know what is going on and who's the sniper it's also the acting of Sheridan and Jack O'Connell (Kurtis) that takes this flick to a higher level.
Jack o'connell manages to turn a firstly hated character into a lovable rouge and is on occasions very humorous.Overall the film is interesting and chilling with no major disappointment except a few plot points that were not explained; however, it still entertained me to the end..
:)I thoroughly enjoyed every moment and recommend it unreservedly for people who enjoy good drama, thriller, suspense, action movies etc and for those who like to see how a movie can be brilliant without the need for a huge budget and fancy effects..
However, for all its financial shortcomings, it does its best to lift itself above the rest.The residents of the top floor of a high rise tower block - soon to be demolished - are targeted by a sniper who won't let them leave (alive, anyway).
You could do worse (I found the only major plot point I found hard to stomach was how one sniper could effectively shoot everyone in 0.1 seconds as soon as he saw them at any window - seriously, he must be the best marksman in the world!)..
It's only a question of time before they're all picked off unless they can find a way to escape.Put your realism aside for this one, as there's a few plot holes, but this is escapist drama and is clearly here to entertain and keep you on edge and this film does just that.
Nunn's direction is sharp and effective and keeps you entertained through out and while the ending is a little bit expected it still not the let down that others would have you believe.A well made fun film that you can watch happily with popcorn for 90 minutes, all four us liked it..
The plot is very simple, the few remaining residents who all live on the top floor of a block of flats that's about to be torn down, end up being trapped by an unseen sniper, whose picking off the residents one by one."Tower Block" is a movie that keeps you hooked from start to finish, with a simplistic plot that never becomes ridiculous or over the top, and even creates a realistic situation which does make it scarier and the fact that you don't know where or why the events in this movie are happening, which adds even more tension and terror to the proceedings.Another terrifying factor of this movie is that no-one is safe even children, which in my opinion was very unsettling and the fact at the opening a young boy is banging on doors begging for help and nobody helps, which is sadly unrealistic.
Tower Block really works as a thriller and as a horror movie and doesn't pull any punches and okay doesn't break any new ground but has enough violence and tension that makes an awesome movie.
Jack O'Connell also delivers a strong performance, its difficult portraying a guy who's at first unlikeable and awful, but as the numbers drop he becomes more and more rounded, and also Russell Tovey also another standout as the alcoholic loner.All in all This movie works really well at crafting a claustrophobic atmosphere, with a brilliant cast that makes this experience feel very real..
Prior to it's demolition a small group of people awaiting relocation on the top floor of a Tower Block start being picked off by a sniper.
The film builds a nerve shredding air of tension as the terrified and trapped inhabitants desperately try to escape from the tower block.
The dialogue and the interaction between the characters is believable and for a film set in one place the story is admirably fast paced.
TOWER BLOCK follows in the footsteps of plenty of recent low-budget thrillers in having a single location as its setting.
In essence, it's a bunch of disparate characters trapped in a corridor by a sniper, and yet maximum tension is generated from such a scenario.The actors are fine in their roles, with Sheridan Smith's resourceful heroine a modern-day Ellen Ripley, and Jack O'Connell's would-be villain undergoing a particularly interesting character arc.
STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday MorningSerenity House is the latest in a long line of high rise London tower blocks scheduled for demolition, with the niggling problem of a few remaining residents on the top floor.
A year later, those remaining residents find themselves at the mercy of a sniper's rifle, as one by one they are plucked off as they try to work out how to survive and who is behind it.These grim, gritty urban British dramas have all become pretty interchangeable, with some seemingly appearing out of nowhere on DVD, some getting maybe a limited release in theatres here and there and some enjoying more of a mainstream following.
A familiar sight in these films tends to be the titular 'tower blocks', the high rising tenement complexes which, at the beginning of the film, are acknowledged as having originally being seen as a wondrous privilege after the second world war for those lower down the scale in society but which, over the years, deteriorated into decadent, run down hell holes, breeding grounds for crime.
As it is, it's a film in a league all of it's own, a hard hitting, unbearably tense and scary effort that works wonders.The first 'sniper shot', as the first victim casually sits and talks with another character over some coffee, genuinely made me jump out my skin and sets the tone for what's about to follow.
When a teenager is beaten to death in the building, and no-one will come forward as a witness for fear of reprisal, a vengeful sniper armed with a high-powered rifle and laser sights blocks off all exits in the high-rise and proceeds to blow the heads off the tight-lipped residents.The killer in Tower Block is a truly incredible individual: not only can he take aim and shoot the dick off a gnat at 100 yards, in the dark, in under a second, but he's also adept at rigging complex booby traps in a public space without raising any suspicion, knows how to block cell phone signals and internet connections, and even has a designer's eye, rustling up a natty graffiti-style logo to announce his campaign of terror.
That said, he's still no match for feisty blonde Becky (Sheridan Smith), who is able to thwart the shooter's best laid plans with a little help from her surviving neighbours, including local thug Kurtis (Jack O'Connell) and friendly, fearless fellow Neville (Ralph Brown).With a lot more care and attention in the script department, this might have been a taut little thriller—there's definitely the germ of a good idea in there somewhere— but too many far-fetched elements, massive plot holes and unlikeable characters (I struggle with wastrels, criminals and chavs as heroes—see also Attack The Block) prevent it from being a success, despite the best efforts of a game cast (Jack O'Connell's OTT performance is a blast) and competent direction from James Nunn and Ronnie Thompson.
Actress's and actors, well Sheridan Smith(Becky)is well up for perhaps a key role in making this movie come to life, Jack O'Connell, well in the movie you would really want to throw this kind of guy in real life off the roof!!!let's just say he portrays the part he was chosen to act well...Ralph Brown (Neville) had our full approval for what he does....anyway the film was full of action, with a twist we really did not see coming...
A Decent Thriller, For What It Was. Several months after witnessing a murder, residents of Tower Block 31 find themselves being picked off by a sniper, pitting those lucky enough to be alive into a battle for survival.Leading the way is Sheridan Smith, who I was not previously familiar with, despite her distinguished list of credits.
The British are less superficial about who they cast (as this film shows -- not one person was more attractive than average, giving it a more realistic feel).The idea that a sniper is taking out people in an apartment complex is pretty cool and makes for a good thriller.
Tower Block is a good low budget British thriller film starring Sheridan Smith and upcoming star Jack O'Connell."Several months after witnessing a murder, residents of Tower Block 31 find themselves being picked off by a sniper" - As you can probably tell by this description, the film is shot entirely in one place.
It is all mostly set in the top floor of a tower block, where around 10 residents are trying to escape after a mysterious sniper takes down members of their families.
The cast mostly gave good performances and as the film went on, characters seemed to suffer more brutal exits.
All in all its a little predictable but still a good thriller film to pass the time (only 85 minutes).Don't open the curtains 7/10..
An unidentified sniper with a high-powered semi-automatic rifle is picking off the last residents of a decaying inner city tower block.
The scene is set for a ferocious game of cat and mouse in this tense low-budget British thriller.What makes it good and watchable?
Sheridan Smith is excellent as our vaguely slatternly heroine and Jack O'Connell stands out as Kurtis, the block's resident criminal running a protection racket on the others.
Moving on a few months, the tower block is closing and the only residents that are left are in the top floor, and would you believe it?
Some dirty rotter starts taking pot shots at them.And they are really good, because they only have to stick their head or hand up near the window and its instant death....Despite the fact that the premise is a bit silly, and all they had to do was to stay on the other side of the tower block, this film is a solid thriller, with great performances from Smith and O'Connell.But a lot of work could have been done on the characters.
Good Low Budget British Film..
As much as I would like to say this is a good movie, there are things that don't add up in this film.
Let say that tower block has only 18 floors, the highly-trained sniper would need to be somewhere higher than the roof of that building to shoot at the fire hose that the guy was holding onto while climbing down the building on the other side.
Since there was only one sniper (obviously it is impossible for him to be staring at and shooting at all four facades of the building at the same time and it didn't seem like the sniper had installed cameras all over the building, those residents could have all gotten down to the first or second floor of the tower block through the elevator shaft and broken into the flats that have windows facing the other side and climbed down from there..
Basically tower blocks were built during the Second World War, they were originally welcomed, especially for great views, making them popular living spaces, but they deteriorated, grew a bad reputation for low cost living and due to rising crime levels, increasing their unpopularity.
One night, fifteen-year-old Jimmy (Ralph Laurila) runs up and through the tower block begging for help, he is ignored, two masked men chase him, the only person who tries to help is office worker Becky (Sheridan Smith), but she ends up beaten to the ground, while Jimmy is murdered and dragged away.
Smith as the Sigourney Weaver-like accidental heroine is great, and there is great support from the likes of O'Connell, Brown and Tovey, it is a very simple concept, a crazed sniper who has thought of everything trapping innocent but equally guilty people in their high rise and they try whatever they can to escape, the derelict East End tower block makes for a good eerie location, and there are plenty of gory moments and well-timed shocks to keep nerves jangling, it is a a fantastically tense thriller.
Tower Block moves at a very brisk pace and I don't recall there being a dull moment throughout the film.
For me the worst aspect of the film was the final 10 minutes or so; the vigilante police officer decides to enter the Tower Block to pick off the remaining residents.
The end of the film is also a bit ambiguous as you find yourself not sure whose side you should be on - the residents were wrong because they didn't do anything to prevent the sniper/police officer's son from getting killed, but then again the police officer killed a lot of people who genuinely may not have known who killed his son.
The residents of the apartment building Tower Block 31 witness the brutal murder of a young man.