Wow! Such a good movie.

Such a frustrating disappointment

Sorry, this movie sucks

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

"Glue" is an absorbing British murder mystery / drama mini-series that pulls you in and continuously makes you want to watch the next episode. The world it creates feels real, the characters (well, the main ones, anyway) are people you get to know intimately. Nearly all of the young actors (but especially those playing Tina, Rob, James and Eli) do an exceptional job. If there is one problem with this series, it's that it might have been more effective if it had slightly fewer episodes, maybe 6 instead of 8 in total. As it is, there are some moments in the middle where the series seems to spend a little too much time on one particular love triangle (while practically ignoring the death of another character), and you may find yourself wishing they would get on with the mystery quicker. Still, the resolution is generally satisfying, and I would recommend this mini-series to fans of the genre....though, be warned, it's quite edgy and not suitable for family viewing. *** out of 4.

Glue is an 8-episode whodunnit set in the rural community of the Berkshire Downs in southern England. It concentrates on a group of friends aged ~19 who have discovered sex, drugs and rock n'roll but are only just working out the consequences.Since some of the group are Roma, the series plays on themes of inclusion/exclusion between the Roma and the "gadjo" (non-Roma) community, and Roma who leave the travelling life to become gadjos. Themes of life and death are also explored through animals, one character works as a vet and two others at a racing stable. But really it's about the dark things that lie beneath a superficially lovely environment, and how things that have happened to families in the past mess things up for the present. In that respect it feels like someone's watched a lot of Stephen Poliakoff and has tried to create a canvas that goes in that direction whilst having rather more action. Unfortunately they're not that good.A key requirement of a whodunnit is to leave you guessing, and the basic structure of Glue's plot works well in that respect - there's lots of red herrings to keep you on your toes. The cast do a great job too - you can imagine this is the sort of young ensemble piece that will spawn a number of stars of big-budget films in years to come. Charlotte Spencer steals it for me (but I'm a sucker for the ginger freckly look), I can see Callum Turner brooding as the romantic lead in a Hardy or Austen adaptation in 2020, and Jordan Stephens is surprisingly good, he's got a future in acting if the Rizzle Kicks thing doesn't work out. I find Yasmin Paige less compelling in the Miss Marple role as a trainee policewoman, I think it's partly her and partly a character which is trying to present several different faces to the world and ends up falling in the gaps between worlds. I know it's the intention for her to be adrift like that, but I think it needed a better actress to convey such complexity.It's a shame that a good cast and good plot aren't quite enough to make a fully satisfying show. There's at least one stupid irritating goof in each episode - for instance you are only allowed to shoot pheasants in winter, but a shoot is depicted among bluebell flowers (ie May), and other scenes happen in a field that's close to harvest (July?) or at 8pm in daylight. Older viewers may be put off by the gratuitous yobbishness of the first two episodes - I'd urge such viewers to stick with it, that stuff largely disappears after Glue has shown how down with the kids it is and it becomes a lot more serious. It's fair to say that none of the characters are particularly likable, so if you're looking for heroes to cheer then this isn't really your thing.And otherwise - it just doesn't quite come together, partly because all those red herrings make for quite a crowded cast list and you get a bit lost between them all (a few blond(e) wigs would have helped distinguish them) - but they have scope to be developed in a second series, the attempts at epic cinematography amount to a GoPro on a drone and the soundtrack is surprisingly sparse.But I don't want to sound too down on Glue - overall it should satisfy anyone looking for a good whodunnit which tries to ask some questions about society and family, although it may help if you're young enough to have heard of Rizzle Kicks!

In many ways this was a good series with many strands and mis-directions. However the acting was erratic and not always believable. But worse than that, as usual, everything around the horse elements was very poor. Wrong tack (General purpose not racing saddles), race horses that just stand around for hours without being tied up, the jockey being given her first race in a big race, anyone allowed to wander around in the weighing room but no officials there, no Stewards enquiry 're the pulled race and many other elements. There was so much potential here and I did persevere to the end (just cos I wanted to know the outcome) but it fell very short of what it could have been

This series and the gradual revelation of characters, their histories and self-realizations make for first-rate watching. From an opener in which the players seem like a bored bunch of small town fun seekers, to the end where we feel intimately acquainted with every one of them, the central crime and associated misdeeds play against the personal network in perplexing, infuriating and masterful ways. This is a memorable group and the show should garner awards all around.The insight into ethnic factions and the unreasonable biases they create and maintain was eye-opening. Revelation of grudges and resentments takes its time and unfolds just as one has nearly forgotten about them. This season feels wrapped-up, but there is definitely room for another season. The Karma Cafe still has a couple of characters who haven't yet received what they deserve.