I attended the incredible Peaky Blinders movie world premiere in Birmingham - here’s my verdict of the long awaited film The Immortal Man - Review
The Peaky Blinders movie is finally here - fans across the globe have been waiting patiently for the hotly anticipated return of the Shelby clan, this time appearing on the big screen, and we got to see the incredible world premiere
Well, what can I say?
The Peaky Blinders phenomenon created by Steven Knight has been one of the most exciting things ever to happen to the West Midlands.
Tommy Shelby is a total legend and the TV series shot Birmingham and the region into the global stratosphere like never before.
Now the iconic story continues - as a film - and it’s an explosion of magnificence and emotion, with a touch of gypsy magic.
My spine is still tingling from the thrill of seeing these Brummie megastar characters once more - this time on the big screen with the cinematic brilliance of the series magnified in all its glory.
I don’t want to spoil anyone’s experience by giving away the full storyline, but be prepared for an emotional roller coaster.
And I’m pretty sure that even if you haven’t watched all the previous episodes, or genned up on key points in the story which begins in 1919 and has now reached 1940 - you’ll still enjoy it.
I could have sat for another ten hours watching Cillian Murphy, Stephen Graham, Rebecca Ferguson, Tim Roth, Barry Keoghan - to mention just a few of the big names in the movie - and the latest trials and tribulations to hit the city’s most famous gangster clan.
It’s totally mesmerising.
Bold, brilliant, intense, incredible - and so much more.
The haunting music, sensational fashion, quite a few massive explosions - and a gripping storyline captivated the audience at Birmingham’s Symphony Hall at the ICC from start to finish on Monday night - ahead of its release in cinemas today (Thursday).
A dynamite concoction of calamity - the plot and more
The story picks up from the end of series 6 - when our Tommy was last seen burning down his caravan to start a new life back in the 1930s.
He was never destined to be a normal, mortal man, we have been told.
And we meet the gangster chief again in the movie, once more played perfectly by Cillian Murphy, and this time World War II is underway and Birmingham is under siege.
It’s been billed as Tommy Shelby’s ‘most destructive reckoning yet’ - so there was a lot to live up to.
You may have seen the trailer where Ada Shelby (Sophie Rundle) warns her brother that his illegitimate ‘gypsy son’, Duke (played by Barry Keoghan), is running the Peaky Blinders ‘like it’s 1919 all over again’.
She’s not wrong. Duke is certainly putting it about in true Shelby fashion when we meet him on screen - although the violence wasn’t too graphic, you may be pleased to hear.
Tommy takes a bit of persuading to come out of his self-imposed exile and make it back to Birmingham. But with the help of Kaulo, a new character played by Rebecca Ferguson, he finally shows up in The Garrison.
Meanwhile baddie extraordinaire, Beckett (a terrifying make-believe fascist sympathiser played by Tim Roth), is trying his hardest to lure Duke into, maybe the most dangerous ever, plot yet to face the Shelby clan.
“The world don’t give a f**k about me,” says Duke. “And I don’t give a f**k about the world.”
It’s a dynamite concoction of calamity.
But there’s some humour in this story too - don’t worry about being terrified all the way through. It’s full of emotion, remember - and you’ll want to laugh as well as cry as the story unfolds.
I was particularly touched by the real life historic touch points which paid tribute to the everyday people of Birmingham.
Director Tom Harper spoke of how ‘wonderful’ it was to make the movie on the streets of Birmingham, saying: “When you’re on the streets of Digbeth or Small Heath – that is the place where the myth of the Peaky Blinders was born.
“Sometimes, if you just close your eyes for a minute you can almost slip back in time and feel what it must have been like for those characters, living in that time, and I think that can’t help but seep into the filmmaking. And then, hopefully, when the audience watches the film, they’ll feel that too.”
For me this is the film’s secret ingredient - those real life characters from times gone by seeping into the movie making - that has catapulted the Peaky Blinders into the global phenomenon that it has become.
I was also blown away by Barry Keoghan’s performance - it was so powerful and true - a real complement to Cillian’s Tommy Shelby. The 33 year-old actor from Dublin has previously impressed with his star roles in Saltburn, Dunkirk and The Banshees of Inisherin.
Don't forget to look out for local landmarks too. The Black Country Living Museum once again gets a starring role in The Immortal Man - the BCLM’s historic boat dock appeared as Charlie Strong’s Yard in all six of the show’s series. Film crews also captured scenes by the canal at Bumble Hole Nature Reserve in the Netherton area of Dudley. Filming for the Netflix movie has also taken place at Steven Knight's Digbeth Loc Studios, Digbeth, and by the canals off Gas Street in Birmingham city centre.
Behind the scenes at the World Premiere
I was so excited to be invited to the World Premiere of The Immortal Man.
I’m not going to lie, I am a huge Peaky Blinders fan and have followed the series from the beginning.
So it was a huge honour to attend the star studded event in my home city.
Netflix went all out to impress the Peaky Blinders birthplace.
Centenary Square was literally ablaze with Shelby clan exhilaration.
The atmosphere was electric. Huge cheers filled the chilly, early spring air as the cast made their appearances on the red carpet, along with creator Steven Knight.
Fans crowded around the spectacle, watching on in wonder as the world renowned heroes came home.
In addition to the cast, and director a host of celebrities were invited to the event. This included Aston Villa footballers Matty Cash, Leon Bailey among others, former Lioness Karen Carney, Ellie Simons, Tinie Tempah, UB40’s Robin and Matt Campbell and Norman Hassan, Richard Ashcroft and John Taylor from Duran Duran.
As a guest, in addition to getting a first look at the movie we were also invited to pre-show drinks in ‘The Garrison’ - as a tribute to the story, the bar areas of Symphony Hall got a Shelby-stile makeover.
A host of celebrities and influencers rubbed shoulders with local dignitaries and journalists to celebrate the latest Peaky Blinders incarnation.
Ahead of the World Premiere screening Tom Harper, Steven Knight and Cillian Murphy addressed the audience in the auditorium.
Cillian paid tribute to the fans saying: “I just feel a load of gratitude, immense gratitude to the fans first and foremost for making the show what it is.
“Because it was a little show on BBC Two on Sunday evenings and then gradually and incrementally it became this global phenomena that was down to the fans. So I feel immense gratitude.”
He also paid tribute to creator Steven Knight saying: “To have that level of writing for that length of time, you know, it’s a once in a lifetime freak occurrence to meet a writer at the top of his game like that.”
The evening ended with an unprompted ovation - applause filled the auditorium as the credits rolled and the powerful movie embedded itself in our memories.
As I made my way through town afterwards to get a taxi home I felt a surge of pride for Birmingham and its characters from times gone by.
Thankfully, for a fan like me, it’s not all over - two more TV series are on their way!
How to watch The Peaky Blinders movie: The Immortal Man
Now you can see the film on the big screen. It’s being screened at selected cinemas across the West Midlands from today (Thursday, March 6).
Several independent cinema houses are showing it including the Mockingbird in Digbeth and Lockworks in Wolverhampton.
It is also being shown at these cinema chains: Showcase, Picturehouse, Everyman, The Light, and Movie House.
The Immortal Man will then be available on Netflix from March 20. Don’t miss out - by order of those Peaky Blinders!
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