ClassyWas Excellent, smart action film.

Claire Dunne One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

Matylda Swan It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

Tobias Burrows It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

John Haunting movie, with a subject that will have you cringing, or crying. Wonderfully cast, great setting, and the background music fits like another cast member.

Spikeopath Tim Roth dons the directing hat for the first time and brings to the screen a shattering tale of incest and child abuse. Alexander Stuart adapts from his own novel and it stars Ray Winstone, Lara Belmont, Freddie Cunliffe and Tilda Swinton. Story is about a family who have moved from London to the Devonshire coast. The son, Tom, is unhappy and feels alienated in the new surroundings, but when he discovers a dark family secret, things become much much worse.It's an uncomfortable viewing experience at times, making it a film you don't readily recommend, but Roth's approach to the story gives out a powerful message without exploitation or sermonising. The script is deliberately taut and sparse, while the marrying up of the crashing waves and jagged rocks of the locale with the emotional turmoil is a deft piece of directing. The use of newcomers Belmont and Cunliffe add a potent sense of realism to the whole thing, aided no end by an intelligent screenplay that doesn't go for conventionality. Quite simply it's an unforgettable film, a claustrophobic emotional battering ram of celluloid. 9/10

Robyn Nesbitt (nesfilmreviews) In "The War Zone," First time director Tim Roth makes an impressive and smooth transition from being in front of the camera to behind it. A searing drama about incest, "The War Zone" is a brave debut by Roth. The subject matter is noncommercial, and Roth confronts it angrily, and without exploitation. Simply put, "The War Zone" is one of the best films of 1999.The film takes place in the rural Devon countryside, where a family of four has just moved from London. Events are related from the perspective of 15 year-old Tom (Freddie Cunliffe), who is unhappy with life away from the city. His 18 year-old sister, Jessie (Lara Belmont), has apparently adjusted better than he has. His parents (Ray Winstone, Tilda Swinton) seem happy and comfortable in their new home, and his mother is on the verge of delivering her third child. Then, shortly after the baby is born, Tom's world is turned upside down when he spies a covert sexual encounter between Jessie and his father. Tom confronts Jessie about the incident, but she denies it, accusing him of having an overactive imagination. He is not convinced, and sets out to learn the facts.Roth's direction is moody and austere--it emphasizes the simple details of domestic life and the ways in which families unwittingly collude to avoid the truth. He favors scenes that appear to be about nothing: Mum talking on the phone in the background, while in the foreground Dad bounces the new baby. He lingers on these uneventful moments -- as if to imply that such a genial routine can provide a smoke screen. One of the lingering questions is whether Swinton's character knows what's going on.While Roth's direction and Alexander Stuart's screenplay are integral to the film's success, the consistently high level of acting is of paramount importance. Roth has assembled an amazing quartet of actors, two of whom have not had previous screen experience, Freddie Cunliffe and Lara Belmont. The strength of Ray Winstone's performance is that he makes his character into a far more complex individual than the typical child abuser. With the exception of one scene, he is shown to be a loving, caring father and husband.The final shot of the film looks like a framed painting, the siblings huddled together alone in a bunker, held long enough that the pain and damage done to these children is apparent to everyone. When the credits begin to roll, you are almost powerless to move. A father who loves his children, and wants the best for them -- but can't stop himself from destroying what he cherishes most.

PeterMitchell-506-564364 Like Gary Oldman, actor Tim Roth has made his first feature, and again, it's doesn't fail to disappoint. Who would of thought in his directing debut, the subject would set around incest. This is a tight solid drama, some of impossible situations. Winstone is having it off with the daughter, but she's not the only one. On their private trips to London another older woman joins them, hence making a threesome. One night the son spots the two in the bath from outside. He threatens to tell the mother if they do it again, which of course they will. This brings the violent streak out in the son. While rummaging through the sister's drawers he finds some naked photos. See, the son is too scared to confront the dad but when he does, it's WAR. Winstone brings a much lighter character to his one in Nil By Mouth, but near the end when he's spouting a string a f words, this kind of resembles him in that movies with virtually some of the same lines. Tilda Swinton (always fantastic) the mother character who has fallen pregnant, of course is oblivious to this. When she has the baby, Winstone already started on it. See, Winstone's got a real problem. The War Zone treads dangerous waters, going places a lot of other movie don't want to go, one scene has the father leant over the daughter, in their private hideaway, the daughter telling him, "Why do you always have to do it like that?". I guess Winstone is courteous, and almost human in that sense, but the real reason is, he can't, is he so's guilt stricken inside, where he would see the mother's face instead. That's my analogy anyhow. I felt sorry for the son who suffers the most in the movie. He so wants to tell the mother, but this is about the worst time. He disclose it near the end which causes the explosive confrontation scene between father and son near the end, a heavy scene with Winstone heavily denying it, and again, the son saying only very few words. Both teen actors in this weren't previously trained and works better for them in the natural performances they give. The War Zone is not for all tastes, but for the others, it's compulsive viewing. performances the give.