Three and Out (2008)

Director:

Jonathan Gershfield

Writers:

Steve Lewis (writer)
Tony Owen (writer)

Release Date:

25 April 2008 (UK)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

A comedy about how far you would go to change your life.

Plot:

A comedy about ordinary people with unique dilemmas. How far will they go? Will the cocktail of desperation, friendship, loneliness, love and even a brush with cannibalism derail their intent? |

Plot Keywords:

Book In Film With Same Name | Crushed To Death | Dying Wish | Scene During End Credits | Hit By Subway

Cast

Mackenzie Crook	...	Paul Callow
Colm Meaney	...	Tommy Cassidy
Imelda Staunton	...	Rosemary Cassidy
Gemma Arterton	...	Frankie
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Annette Badland	...	Maureen
Mark Benton	...	Vic
Sharon Duncan-Brewster	...	Yvonne
Frank Dunne	...	Danny
Kerry Katona	...	Mary
Dean Kelly	...	Policeman
Gary Lewis	...	Callaghan
Steve Money	...	Muscles
Antony Sher	...	Maurice
Rhashan Stone	...	Ash

Runtime:

106 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

UK:15 (cinema rating) | Ireland:15A

Filming Locations:

Brent Cross Shopping Centre, Hendon, London, England, UK

Company:

Rovinge Motion Picture Company (RMPC)

Goofs:

Miscellaneous: The subtitle of the book read by the man that Paul sees in the library is mispunctuated: "A Gay Mans Guide" instead of "A Gay Man's Guide".

Down and Out - Wrongly marketed and very Disappointing

Three and Out has to go down as a serious misfire, having caused something of a controversy with it's subject matter (suicide on the London Tube) the film has achieved more publicity than it really has a right to. Having worked on the tube I was interested to see how they would handle the issue and it has to be said they haven't handled it very well. I found the actual scenes of the accidents quite distressing in what is supposed to be a 'comedy'. But the main insult I feel to tube drivers is the the portrayed attitude of the protagonists friends, with one remarking "I had two under in two weeks once" as if its something that happens to tube drivers every week. The attitude of Tube drivers is very different to that portrayed here and having one under is not a regular occurrence for them and not something they would want to repeat.

Having got past this rather unpleasant start to the movie you then get into the main part of the film to discover that there's no real substance. The film doesn't know what it wants to be, yes there are one or two funny moments but how you can market this as a comedy is anyones guess. Colm Meaney and Imelda Staunton give OK performances but their stuck with a script thats like something from a college project. Mackenzie Crooks character just comes across as a weird loser and its difficult to want any happiness for him as he doesn't appear to want to help himself, content to wallow in misery and dream about being alone on a Scottish island. There's not enough character build up, the middle of the film meanders with little point to it and when the conclusion arrives it is again if the movie doesn't know what it wants to be a serious drama or a quirky comedy. I wont reveal the end but the final moments of the film feel tacked on and wrap up the issues the film is supposed to be raising with a resolution that is just far to neat and tidy (not to mention sugar coated).

Maybe people will disagree with me but seeing this at a pre-screening I couldn't help feel that this will be one of the worst movies of the year 2/10