recommended

A lot of fun.

After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

THE DEBT 2003 This extremely well written UK television film is definitely worth looking up. This one tells the tale of a break and enter robbery, that goes sideways. The tale is told from the point of view of three of the people involved. First we have old time safe cracker, Warren Clarke. Then there is Detective Sgt, Hugo Speer as well as fresh out of Law School, Lee Williams.The film starts with Warren Clarke having his daughter, Amanda Abbington, and his grandson moving in with him. Abbington has broken up with her perpetual loser of a husband, Martin Freeman. Freeman is one of those people who fouls-up everything he does.Clarke was a safe cracker in his younger days, but has been straight since getting out of jail 4-5 years before. He has a nice job as a baker and wants no more trouble with John Law.Several days later, Martin Freeman is over at Clarke's home visiting his son. There is a knock at the door which Freeman answers. Two large gentlemen with a definite anti-social bent proceed to give Freeman a thumping. After the pair have left, Clarke asks the battered Freeman what was the scene about. Freeman it seems is into a local loan shark type for 20,000. The beating was a reminder that he was late with his payment.Clarke knows the man, Malcolm Storry, from the old days. Storry is a right villain not above using the heavy mob to get results. Clarke has a meeting with the man about Freeman's debt. Storry offers to write off the debt if Clarke will do a small job for him. There is an old safe at a building contractors that Storry needs burgled. Do this, and Storry will forgive Freeman's debt.Clarke is rather reluctant to do the job and asks for time to think about it. Clarke soon decides to do the job after taking a look at the site. He wants to help out his daughter and grandson. Freeman now steps up and asks to come along to help. Against his better judgement, Clarke agrees.That night, they hit the out of the way industrial park where the safe is. They pull the job and take off with a large packet of cash. Freeman lingers behind to grab his hat. Next thing you know the building is alight. Clarke sees the site security guard inside fighting the flames. He sees the man go down and rushes back inside, himself. He drags the brunt man outside to safety, then hotfoots it out of the area with Freeman.Now we meet the Police, Detective Sgt Hugo Speer is having a bad day. Has just found out the promotion he was counting on has went to his younger partner, Nina Sosanya. Speer is swimming in debt with a son in a private school. He really needed the expected bump in pay. Speer and his new boss, Sosanya are assigned the case. The security guard is badly burned and barely clinging to life in the emergency ward. He is unable to answer any questions.After a look through the usual suspect's books, several old-time safe men are paid a visit. Clarke is among these. Clarke though has arranged his alibi and is soon released. Now the guard succumbs to his injuries. The Police come back and lean hard. Clarke stands tough but his alibi soon shows cracks. The Police still do not have enough to charge Clarke, but suggest he hire a lawyer.Clarke now lays into son in law Freeman. He blames him for setting the fire when he lingered at the site. Freeman swears he had nothing to do with the deed.Now the third of our story narrators shows. Young Lawyer, Lee Williams is assigned to be Clarke's brief. Williams is also having a rough week. His wife is ready to have a child, his boss, Orla Brady, is an old flame from college. She wants to continue their affair from back in the day. Williams gets the feeling his future employment depends on stepping out with Miss Brady.The rest of the film follows each person's attempt to get out from under their problems. The cop Speer, moonlights as a cab driver which impacts his work as a cop. Clarke finally figures out that Freeman was in cahoots with thug Storry. It was all to retrieve blackmail photos the construction contractor had of Storry's young daughter. Lawyer Williams soon digs up evidence that his boss, Brady, is crooked, and involved with Storry. So on and so on.This one features quite a nifty bit of story-telling, which is all nicely wrapped up with a somewhat unexpected ending. The director, Ron Jones, combines the serious with the human element, and throws in bit of humor to balance the production out. This is a superior effort all around.

I may actually watch this one again, and I almost never watch anything again.We love Martin Freeman, right? But in this one, he's not so likable -- except he's still sympathetic because he's him. So it's hard not to root for him. The very end... nah, I won't spoil it. :-p Warren Clarke doesn't look like a movie star, but he certainly fit this role perfectly. He was entirely believable in every way.The continual shifting between narrators was a bit confusing once in a while, and I sometimes found myself trying to recall what situation a given narrator had going on. The device is clever, but is it good movie-making? Alternatively, is it good in principle but stretched too far with 4? You tell me. It's the main reason I might watch this again: to "get" all the angles.Finally, I just have to say that Nina Sosanya with those dreads is unbelievably enchanting. What a fox!

The debt is well worth a watch, as we follow a bunch of criminals trying to make their way out of money-trouble in a complex everyday world. Lawyer, police, construction entrepreneurs and petty thieves - well you all got them here, in a complex, but still neatly told story.Without telling too much, director Jon Jones has a great cast helping him get this everyday crime story to shine. Warren Clarke, Hugo Speer, Martyin Freeman and Lee Williams a head of a strong crew, makes this totally believable due to good acting. The story is told with a good portion of humor, though not so much that it makes this a comedy.Geoff Dresner used to fix even the most secure safes when we was a criminal. Now he's happy working at a bakery, until his son in law, which is not at all trustworthy, and out of his daughter's life, seemingly tries to find back in a safe haven, due to a debt of £ 20.000 which he's not at all able to pay.It's the worst kind of loan-sharks behind it, and Geoff feels forced to go back to his old criminal paths to get hold of the money, before the little family is beaten to death by the loan sharks hit men. The only trouble is that his son in law forces himself to join. The mistakes piles up, and not without troubles.However, also the young lawyer, and one of the investigators are having problems on their own. How on earth can this end up in a happy Hollywood ending? Well, it's a British film, financed bu BBC, having all the qualities. A well recommended watch, which will entertain you all along.