Synopsis
A 14-year old boy’s life changes forever when his estranged mother introduces him to the music of The Clash in 1979 London.
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Cast
- Jonathan Rhys MeyersJoe Strummer
- Daniel HuttlestoneShay Baker
- Dougray ScottNick Baker
- Natascha McElhoneSandrine
- Tom HughesJohnny
- Kerry HowardPenelope
- Nell WilliamsVivian Daniels
- Samuel RobertsonTommy Gun
- Kamryn BoydPunk Rock Kid
- Meredith OstromRebecca
- 63
Slant Magazine
The film evinces a clear-eyed sense of the limits that a capitalistic society places on its working class. - 63
The Seattle Times
With its boyhood-to-manhood tropes (growing up means getting a girl’s attention and winning an idol’s respect), London Town can’t be taken too seriously. But it’s nice to see part of the Clash’s populist legacy in a fan’s journey. - 50
Village Voice
All the ingredients for a gritty — if familiar — coming-of-age story are here. But London Town, though spirited, is consistently tension-free. - 50
Los Angeles Times
The fantasy of a punk icon for a friend is one thing, but the filmmakers undercut the modest liveliness of their enterprise with a save-the-day storyline that seems far removed from the roiling, anti-authoritative ethos of punk. - 50
The New York Times
An awkward merger of wide-eyed innocence and political unrest, Derrick Borte’s sweet, almost sugary picture wants to rock but never finds the gumption. - 50
RogerEbert.com
The movie’s impersonal, conventional telling of a reasonably standard male coming-of-age story almost tends to make the punk milieu it depicts beside the point. - 40
The Hollywood Reporter
The raw vigor and protest of punk get co-opted by the movie’s coming-of-age story; it’s not the heartfelt sweetness that’s the chief problem, but how run-of-the-mill and derivative the plot is.