An unexpected and understated modern British gem.
Bleak documentary-style camera work and grey urban backdrops of the concrete hell that is "The Resort", lead the viewer to expect a similarly bleak storyline and conclusion. The mocking irony of 'holding' bereft refugees in what is a seaside pleasure beach - all be it a decayed shell of its former self - cannot be ignored.
However, despite the main characters - a refugee mother and son - undergoing depressing experiences, this is surprisingly a touching and somewhat uplifting little film. An uncomplicated and innocent love affair that develops between the mother and the local hard-bitten arcade owner proves that love can grow even where there is no light.
On one level the film is a simple human micro-story and yet on another, it is a stark commentary on the ludicrous British asylum bureaucracy that can actually 'trap' people in this country and render them helpless. The film certainly raises the question of just who would want to put themselves through such a de-humanising process, if at all, they had any other choices?
The story inherently acknowledges that far from all asylum seekers are in genuine fear for their lives. However, it also recognises - through the actions of its main characters - the aspirations and dignity of some refugees who would certainly not choose to idly subsist on state handouts.
Whatever, your political viewpoint on the asylum question, this film is worth a watch, depicting a more rational view of an issue that the press has often depicted as a modern-day bogeyman.