It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

I'm guessing the low 6.2 overall rating for this film is due to the amount of 'unnecessary' violence which turned some people off, but if you're looking for an invigorating and hard-punching British gang/police flick, look no further... it's a very enjoyable film.The main issue is the film's degree of realism, and would this plausibly happen in real life? The answer is yes, it's very plausible in an exaggerated sort of way, with only a few plot-holes to keep the pace moving.I'm also guessing the stereotypical Albanian hit-man and his bad-fitting track suit combination could make a few people reel away from this film - it adds nothing new, granted, but if you like violent British films like 'Starred Up' or 'This Is England', you're equally going to like this.It's seedy, mildly depressing, bleak, hopeless, very violent, graphic... extremely hard-hitting - what's not to like about this film if you enjoy the genre? A heads-up if you've been put off by the negative reviews. Recommended.

The plot is that a drug squad in London is seemingly as corrupt as the people they are trying to police. Michael (Peter Ferdinando) is the Detective Sergeant and he is the central figure with a taste for coke (the snorting variety) but essentially a good heart that is obscured by his own greed. 'The book' is for other cops in this film where the line between the law and law breakers is very opaque indeed.Then their cozy World gets turned upside down when two Albanian low life's turn up and start to make things rather uncomfortable - that is when the line between good and bad goes from blurred to non existent.Now there are some big names here; Stephen Graham and Neil Maskell both giving convincing performances as ever. The acting is all better than good; the direction and the production are superior too. Some of the scenes are very stylishly done, but the visceral depictions of violence (both on and off screen) makes sure that this does not become a 'classy crime flick'. The ending will leave some a bit annoyed but this is in most places a down to earth and realistically imagined film - hence my rating. Not one for the squeamish but one that shows a good Brit crime film can still be made.

In the seamy underworld of London cops, everyone plays by their own rules. There is no one to trust. Police units are in league with criminals and competing with each other for increasing shares of the profits. Laws are not enforced so much as used for advantage over others. As vice cop Michael Logan, with a coke habit and indolent nature, attempts to carve out a larger share of the illicit income for himself, he gets trapped between a ruthless pair of Albanian brothers and his fellow officers who are trying to trap him. Those who should be protected by the law are instead neglected and placed in greater danger. The director and writer based the character of Logan on someone he knew personally. Despite shaky acting of some in the supporting cast, this is a compelling portrait of police officers who are indistinguishable from criminals. The betrayals and back stabbings are underscored by a dark soundtrack by Matt Johnson and The The. Seen at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival.

A corrupt cop Michael leads a team who tackle drug trafficking in London. But they act more like a gang of criminals themselves. Michael habitually cuts deals with the dealers but the arrival of two violent Albanian criminals, who not only traffic drugs but young women as well, presents him with a moral dilemma; while at the same time his team's corruption is threatened with exposure by an old colleague from his past who is assigned to work alongside them.The hyena of the title is of course the bad cop Michael played by Peter Ferdinando. He is a pretty unglamourized central character. I was brought to mind of the film Pusher, particularly the remake set in London. Both films have protagonists who are engulfed in immorality and who are set on a downward spiral, while both also have scarily authentic ethnic gangsters from the south eastern Mediterranean providing the main threat of brutality. But maybe it's this very familiarity that is the problem, in that it seems like we have been here before with British crime flicks. What does stand out somewhat are the occasional moments of extreme grimness. On a few occasions we are presented with pretty visceral violence or the results of it, while there is also the repulsive sight of an overweight man having sex with a comatose girl to contend with. These horrible moments do hit home though and ensure this is a film that doesn't pull its punches. It's a film that is stylised at times, such as the opening assault of the neon lit club, and with an effective moody soundtrack from, of all people, The The. But it certainly isn't over-stylised which is something many other recent examples in the crime genre are, this ensures it has a grittier aesthetic overall which fits in with the story. On the whole though, there's nothing really new here though so in the final analysis it's a solid film as opposed to a very good one.