In my opinion, this is another stellar film from writer/director Mike Leigh. I place it just below his masterpiece Secrets and Lies, but not too far below it. As usual, Leigh has put together a wonderful ensemble cast, which is good, because Timothy Spall would have outshone anything less, and he works best when the rest of the cast is great.

The movie seems bleak a lot of the time. The secret is to allow yourself to care about the characters and be patient. It reminds me of the very early Coronation Street shows: no glitz, no glamour, just like down in the muck with real people.

If you h... read the rest.