The first real disappointment of the Small Axe series, Alex Wheatle was still well acted, well directed and enjoyable as a whole, but the story could and should have been a lot better explored. Again, whilst there were good elements, the story just felt really bare-boned. In the film Mank, Herman Mankiewicz says 'You cannot capture a man's entire life in two hours. All you can hope is to leave the impression of one.' If that's the case, you surely can't capture someone's life in slightly over an hour. The short runtime undercuts any real emotional connection I could have had with any of the characters. The performances are good and I was starting to enjoy the film more by the end, but by that point it was too late. I really appreciate the film from a technical standpoint, and I would still recommend it because of the really good direction and strong ending that somewhat saves the film from being legitimately bad rather than what it is; decent, but disappointing.