From the clunky title, to the sometimes shoddy acting and chavtastic clichés, promising young director Menhaj Huda"s first feature film is a hit n" miss melodrama about London yoof, isshoos...and stuff.

Like an episode of "Grange Hill" on crack, "Kidulthood" begins with a premise so ludicrous it smacks of reality: bullied teenage girl commits suicide, School gives everyone the day off. We"ve all seen these types hanging about tube stations trying to grasp the complexities of how to sit on platform benches, getting sloshed, stoned or both, but are these "hoodies" any worse than the 90s chav, the 80s wideboy, the 70s punk, the 60s hippy or the 50"s Greaser? Not much, are we supposed to think they are? Most definitely, because people always need something to be afraid of and tabloids won"t sell on their own. Huda"s 1999 short; "Jump Boy" successfully portrayed the kind of people many young Londoners went to school with, but what worked at 11 minutes, drags at 90; there"s talk of an unwanted pregnancy, an excellently choreographed baseball bat rampage (almost "Casino"-esque in its brutality) and hoodies larking about whilst their parents wallow in a perpetual state of blissful ignorance (the best point this film has to make) Ray Winstone"s daughter; Jamie also stars, but doesn"t even get to say the equivalent of "I"m the daddy now!".

Realistic violence and authentic street vernacular just about saves "Kidulthood" from the doldrums, its reasonably well acted (shout out to the multitalented Noel Clarke; who wrote the script, and bravely cast himself as the scumbag bully who gets his comeuppance) well directed by Hudja and framed by "Trainspotting" cinematographer Brian Tufano. It"s not the urban masterpiece it wants to be, nor is it as big a waste of space as some the droogs that dominate its story, but as Catherine Tate"s Lauren might say in response to my review: "Am I Bovered?".