Co-written by Noel Clarke Fast Girls is a female lead sport films that follows all the clichés and conventions associated with the genre. Starring Lenora Crichlow as tough girl Shania Andrews, a runner from a tough area of London who gets a chance for glory on the international athletics circuit and her middle-class rival Lisa Temple (Lily James) who share a mutual dislike for each other. Even worst for the two is have to run together in the British relay team at the international championships and have to overcome their differences to succeed.
Running (pun unintended) at a brisk 90 minutes Fast Girls leaves no stone unturned in the myriad of clichés it encounters on its journey, Shania getting corrupted before a big meet and underperforming because of it, misunderstandings between the team, a lead character quitting before having to come back and a disastrous performances before success at the final. It is truly paint-by-numbers screen writing, a Mad Libs versions of the script where people can just feel the gaps. You will just sit through the film bored because it is so predictable.
It is the first film to be directed by Regan Hall and his direction is very bland. There is no invention to the film, the sports scenes are just shot in slo-mo to try and add excitement and it he clean he was working on a very low budget. He does not show much potential at this moment in time.
The best aspect of the film is the acting, getting talent like Crichlow and the glorious Lily James to lead the film. Crichlow was been a competent performer on TV and she provides the goods. James had the most interesting character, being made out to be a villain yet given some depth because she is living in the shadow of her father, a champion athlete who forces her to become a runner, uses his position to ensure she gets preferential treatment, disliked by her teammates and feels she has to win to please her daddy. She could have been the main character of the film and it would have been more interesting to have it from a middle-class perspective.
Fast Girls was made cash in for the 2012 London Olympics and it shows, being a cheap production that wants to tell the most unoriginal film possible. It was a film that earned plenty of 3 star reviews in the UK but it deserves to fall into obscurity.
Running (pun unintended) at a brisk 90 minutes Fast Girls leaves no stone unturned in the myriad of clichés it encounters on its journey, Shania getting corrupted before a big meet and underperforming because of it, misunderstandings between the team, a lead character quitting before having to come back and a disastrous performances before success at the final. It is truly paint-by-numbers screen writing, a Mad Libs versions of the script where people can just feel the gaps. You will just sit through the film bored because it is so predictable.
It is the first film to be directed by Regan Hall and his direction is very bland. There is no invention to the film, the sports scenes are just shot in slo-mo to try and add excitement and it he clean he was working on a very low budget. He does not show much potential at this moment in time.
The best aspect of the film is the acting, getting talent like Crichlow and the glorious Lily James to lead the film. Crichlow was been a competent performer on TV and she provides the goods. James had the most interesting character, being made out to be a villain yet given some depth because she is living in the shadow of her father, a champion athlete who forces her to become a runner, uses his position to ensure she gets preferential treatment, disliked by her teammates and feels she has to win to please her daddy. She could have been the main character of the film and it would have been more interesting to have it from a middle-class perspective.
Fast Girls was made cash in for the 2012 London Olympics and it shows, being a cheap production that wants to tell the most unoriginal film possible. It was a film that earned plenty of 3 star reviews in the UK but it deserves to fall into obscurity.