Rating: 
Summary: A gutwrenching look at working class Londoners
Review: i don't know how much of that movie was autobiographical or how much was more of a visualization of his worst fears of what could have happened, but i don't recall ever seeing a film so personal. i went looking for the movie after i heard gary oldman mention it in an interview, because i could relate a little to the story. there aren't many directors or writers willing to tackle such an emotional or personal issue, but i don't think it could've been done any better than this one did. what i think hit me the most was the honesty of it... as someone who's dealt with a lot of these same issues in my own life, i could see patterns of behavior and dialogue that were so eerily real and familiar i almost couldn't watch a few scenes. i don't know that i agree with a lot of the interpretations i've read about the movie (you know how everyone likes to over-analyze plots and sub-plots and look for hidden messages and so forth... who knows what was in gary oldman's head when he wrote it...), but the way he showed the reality of what happens when people can't talk to each other or ask for help is more common than most of us realize. a lot of people who suffer from any kind of dependency or who inflict emotional (or sometimes even physical) abuse don't even realize they're doing it, because the people they're abusing don't tell them. everyone makes up excuses or avoids the issue, and it becomes a cycle that's never broken. i've never seen a film show that cycle more clearly or blatantly than nil by mouth. i, for one, am beyond thankful that he made this movie. hearing someone else be so unashamed to talk about things that are so often ignored isn't just comforting, it's like divine relief. i've always had a lot of respect for gary oldman for his talent as an actor, and this movie only reaffirmed that his talent goes way beyond that. there aren't many people in our time who can be so honest, and yet still carry themselves the way he does. not only was it brilliantly written and directed, but the documentary style and performances that were almost too real to be called acting, were so original and startling it's enough to mesmerize you. it's a movie i think anyone who's ever had to deal with dependency or abuse, emotional or physical, should see.
Rating:
Summary: nil by mouth
Review: i don't know how much of that movie was autobiographical or how much was more of a visualization of his worst fears of what could have happened, but i don't recall ever seeing a film so personal. i went looking for the movie after i heard gary oldman mention it in an interview, because i could relate a little to the story. there aren't many directors or writers willing to tackle such an emotional or personal issue, but i don't think it could've been done any better than this one did. what i think hit me the most was the honesty of it... as someone who's dealt with a lot of these same issues in my own life, i could see patterns of behavior and dialogue that were so eerily real and familiar i almost couldn't watch a few scenes. i don't know that i agree with a lot of the interpretations i've read about the movie (you know how everyone likes to over-analyze plots and sub-plots and look for hidden messages and so forth... who knows what was in gary oldman's head when he wrote it...), but the way he showed the reality of what happens when people can't talk to each other or ask for help is more common than most of us realize. a lot of people who suffer from any kind of dependency or who inflict emotional (or sometimes even physical) abuse don't even realize they're doing it, because the people they're abusing don't tell them. everyone makes up excuses or avoids the issue, and it becomes a cycle that's never broken. i've never seen a film show that cycle more clearly or blatantly than nil by mouth. i, for one, am beyond thankful that he made this movie. hearing someone else be so unashamed to talk about things that are so often ignored isn't just comforting, it's like divine relief. i've always had a lot of respect for gary oldman for his talent as an actor, and this movie only reaffirmed that his talent goes way beyond that. there aren't many people in our time who can be so honest, and yet still carry themselves the way he does. not only was it brilliantly written and directed, but the documentary style and performances that were almost too real to be called acting, were so original and startling it's enough to mesmerize you. it's a movie i think anyone who's ever had to deal with dependency or abuse, emotional or physical, should see.
Rating:
Summary: Powerful.
Review: I first heard about this film on Siskel&Ebert and I wanted to see it. My brother found it in a small video store and rented it for me. This may very well be one of the most dark, depressing,and brilliant films I have ever seen.
It's directed by Gary Oldman (known for his acting, or overacting, in Dracula, The Professional etc,) and he proves to be a great director. The movie is about a family with Ray Winstone as Ray, the father/husband of the household and Kathy Burke as Valerie. Ray is a working class lout who abuses both drugs and his wife. His son Billy (played by Charlie Creed-Miles) is a herion addict on the streets after his father nearly bites his nose off for stealing his smack. Ray is at times both scary and pittiful, mean and sad, nasty and pathetic. He intertwines these roles so well that at time's you can't tell where he is coming from, or what he'll do next. Valerie is just a simple wife who is just trying to keep her head down so she doesn't get it taken off. However even she is not imune to Ray's violent temper over nothing. In one very vicious scene she is attacked by Ray and although the beating take's place off-camera it still sends chills.
I must warn anyone who wants to watch this movie the it contains more bad language that any I have ever seen (like Pulp Fiction, Scarface, or even South Park) but the profanity only hightens the dread at times. It also looks at life in a very dark way. This is not a happy movie by any means and Oldman has produced a real masterpiece. This has great acting and real good timing between the actors. This is quite simply one of the best movies I have ever seen.
Rating:
Summary: Riveting, Explosive and Real !!!!
Review: I found the acting very comfortable to the actors, they really got inside of the characters to make you feel the pain and auguish of a family caught in the life of poverty and drug addition. These are too lows that if put to the screen as powerfully and explict as Oldman did can give you a chill and reality check. The camera shots were done very close-up to give you the feeling that you were right there in the mist of things!! I can't wait for the next project by Oldman to begin! There was one major thing for me is I wish that there were subtitles because I found it hard to follow the dialog.
Rating:
Summary: good lord!
Review: i may have to agree with one of the other reviewers on this one. i loved it and i really dont want to see it anytime soon. its devastating. i hear often that this was made out of the anger that oldman holds for his father. well your rage has been depicted like no other film. this film is violent and extremely upsetting(thats actually an understatement) but more than anything its genuine. it came from the heart and it must viewed at least once. you can see oldman on the television in one of the scenes.
Rating:
Summary: A gutwrenching look at working class Londoners
Review: I saw this film many years ago in England and it blew my mind. Rarely to you find films on this side of the pond that have as much empathy and visceral honesty about the 'everyman'- except of course for the 70's. This film represents the tenuous relationships binding together the sense of 'family' and 'blood' in lower-middle classes of London. There is a perverse pride in London, which connects this large class of people. It is a culture surrounded by pain, violence, drink, drugs, but also a connectivity to family and comradery - to love. This film captures every drop of blood, every slug of lager, every ounce of pain and joy, and does so with a steady unflinching objective eye. Oldman's directorial debut is a masterpiece. This film is very British, which I can only guess is the reason for its absence over here. Although brilliant, it is nasty, brutal, and undeniably challenging. This film is the underbelly of everything Mike Leigh has done, except for maybe Naked. A must see.
Rating: 
Summary: Takes too long to get going
Review: NIL BY MOUTH is a film that focusses on domestic violence, alcoholism and day-to-day life in a working class area of London. Actor Gary Oldman directed this film and it is very raw in parts, and hard to watch. The main problem with the film is that it takes too long for anything to really happen. In addition, too much time is devoted to the character of Bill (who is quite an uninteresting character). The film really only pulls you in when the big guy starts beating up his wife. This is of course extremely sad to watch but lifts you from the dullness of the film. I was just about to nod off when this scene happened. Overall the film fails, because it relies on violence to make it the slightest bit interesting.
Rating: 
Summary: Amazing - and I never want to see it again.
Review: Oldman's opus on drug abuse, spousal abuse, and life in lower-class England will leave you chilled, never forgetting its high-impact moments. However, they are so intense that they will make many squirm in their seats. Supposedly a friend of Oldman's remarked, after seeing Nil at the Cannes Film Festival, that "it's like you just threw up on everybody." This film is not afraid to do what most film would never admit to - it makes its characters look ugly, sad, pathetic, and difficult to understand (hence one of the two meanings in the title). Very few films acheive such lasting effects, and Nil stands, for me, in the ranks of Sleepers, Girl Interrupted, and Once Were Warriors.
Rating:
Summary: British Working Class Movie
Review: Outstanding performances in this hardest hitting British film for many years. Winstone is superb as drugged and druken wifebeater. Possibly an eye-opener and very true-to-life film which will intentionally disturb.
Rating:
Summary: Not for sub-teens
Review: Teaching high school kids about drugs and violence is a challenge - this video would help with the message. However, it will take a very strong-willed teacher to stand up to a school board for the right to show it in a classroom setting. The soundtrack is outstanding.
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