Rise Of The Footsoldier was such an accomplished film that you would be mistaken for thinking that a prequel would be of as equally high a calibre. Disappointly this is a stinker. The narrative behind Rise Of The Footsoldier gave it a clarity of purpose. The script was rather witty. This film is glum. The dialogue doesn't sparkle. Plenty of "c" and "f" curse words but not used in an amusing way at all. The biggest shocker for me here was that Pat Tate was played by Tamer Hassan instead of Craig Fairbrass, Terry Stone reprises his role as Tony Tucker but Craig Rolfe here is portrayed by Neil Maskell instead of Ronald Manookian. I couldn't believe it when the film portrayed the Rettendon murders yet again. Eh, I thought this was a prequel, and not an inferior sister film ? Ricci Harnett's presence as Carlton Leech is sadly missed. He was quite a presence in Rise Of The Footsoldier. I can't help feeling that Julian Gilbey would have done a better job as director here, but of course he probably had the good sense not to get involved in this. It's obviously a cash-in and quite a poor one at that.
Review of Bonded by Blood
