Noel Clarke Movies

A talented young sprinter (Lenora Crichlow) from a troubled background must embrace the concept of team work, and overcome her rivalry with a fellow athlete (Lily James) in order to qualify for the National Women's Relay Team, and take first place in a major competition. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Writer/director Noel Clarke (Kidulthood, Adulthood) returns to the helm for this frenetic urban thriller following four friends who went their separate ways, but find their fates colliding following a chance meeting with a group of ruthless diamond thieves. Jo (Emma Roberts, Cassandra (Tasmin Egerton), Kerrys (Shanika Warren-Markland) and Shannon (Ophelia Lovibond) used to be inseparable, but lately they've begun to grow apart. As Jo struggles for a sense of direction while earning a meager income in a sterlile supermarket, Cassandra races off to New York for a fling with a guy she met online, militant feminist Kerrys wages an unrelenting war against a male dominated society, and Shannon falls into a treacherous, self-destructive tailspin. But just when it seemed as if these old friends were headed down different paths, a brazen crime thrusts them back together for an exhilarating adventure that will prove just how unpredictable life can really be. Sean Pertwee and Kevin Smith co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A Roman soldier (Michael Fassbender) leads a small band of troops on a mission to rescue a key Roman general after becoming trapped in the territory of their sworn enemies in this period action-adventure film from director Neil Marshall (The Descent, Doomsday). The year is A.D. 117. Despite the growing strength of the Roman Empire, a fierce tribe known as the Picts has prevented Hadrian's armies from conquering northern Britain. The Picts offer a devastating display of their guerilla power when they raid a Roman frontier fort, and Quintus just barely manages to escape with his life. Thirsting for revenge, Quintus joins General Virilus' Ninth Legion as the squadron begins traveling north on a mission to find and kill Gorlacon, the leader of the Picts. That mission is complicated when the Ninth Legion is ambushed and General Virilus is captured, leaving his men stranded behind enemy lines. Now, as the Quintus and the surviving members of the Ninth Legion are hunted from the shadows, they prepare to make one last, desperate bid to save General Virilus and reach the Roman frontier before being captured or killed by the Picts. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Two years after director Menhaj Huda offered an unflinching look at the lives of troubled London youth in Kidulthood, that film's screenwriter and star Noel Clarke steps up to the challenge of directing for this sequel that finds Sam Peel struggling to stop the cycle of violence that nearly destroyed his life. Sam (Clarke) has just served six years for killing Trife, and now he's a free man. But life isn't any easier for Sam on the outside than it was on the inside, because out on the streets he is forced to confront the people he hurt on a daily basis. Some of those people have decided to move on with their lives, but others don't have that luxury. Now, as Sam begins to come to grips with his sorrow and guilt, he is surprised to discover that a new generation of bad boys is out for bloody revenge. Years ago, Trife had tried to warn Sam that he should stop the violence before it's too late. Today it's Sam's duty to try and get that message across and prevent the kids on the streets from throwing their lives away for a skewed sense of honor that doesn't even really exist. Hopefully, for both Sam and the next generation, the kids of today will be more receptive to that message than he once was. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

This British drama follows a day in the lives of four poor youths living in an impoverished neighborhood in West London, where the pressure and desperation of poverty propels each of them towards the choice between a life of bleakness, violence, and crime, and the terrifying prospect of striving for a better life. ~ Cammila Collar, Rovi

For I'll Sleep When I'm Dead, director Mike Hodges re-teams with Trevor Preston, the respected British television writer with whom he made a series of documentaries for ITV back in the 1960s. The film also brings the director together again with actor Clive Owen, the star of his previous film, Croupier, which signaled Hodges' resurgence. Owen plays Will Graham, a former London gangster who moved out to the country after suffering a breakdown of some sort. Will works clearing forests, and lives out of his van, until he loses his job over a lack of proper documentation. Meanwhile, Will's younger brother, Davey, is enjoying his life as a womanizing man about town, and dabbling in drug dealing, until one night, when an older man, Boad (Malcolm McDowell), has him followed and brutally assaults him. The traumatized Davey returns home and takes his own life. Will, uncertain as to where to go, finds himself drawn back to London, where he learns of Davey's death from Mrs. Barz (Sylvia Syms), his landlady. Will investigates what happened that night with his old friend, Mickser (Jamie Foreman). As Will tries to piece together what happened, he goes to visit Helen (Charlotte Rampling), his former lover, who is less than thrilled to see him after he abandoned her years earlier and eventually cut off all contact. The current neighborhood crime boss, Turner (Ken Stott), knows what Will is capable of, and sees him as a threat. Eventually, Will uncovers the truth, and is faced with the unpleasant prospect of avenging Davey's death. Screenwriter Preston took the title for the film from a sardonic song by the late Warren Zevon. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi