Preview by Jon Donnis
After making a serious impression in A Thousand Blows, James Nelson-Joyce returns to the screen with Reputation, a gritty British crime drama arriving on digital this July. Set in the fictional Lancashire town of Dennings, the film follows Wes, a working-class dealer whose grip on control starts to slip when his old friend Tommy walks free from prison.
It's been two years since the town was shaken by the tragic shooting of a child. While grief still lingers, a new street drug known as 'clown' has taken hold, with Wes profiting from the fallout. He's built an empire while Tommy's been locked away, but with Tommy now back on the scene and keen to expand, the uneasy balance begins to crumble.
Director Martin Law, making his feature debut, steers the story into bleak and compelling territory. The film draws influence from Shane Meadows' Dead Man's Shoes and Nicolas Winding Refn's Pusher trilogy, though it brings its own northern grit and lived-in realism. At its centre is Nelson-Joyce, delivering a tough, layered performance as a man torn between his loyalty to an old friend and his responsibility to the family he's trying to protect.
As Tommy pushes to scale the operation, Wes finds himself caught between those who love him and a partner who won't let go. Olivia Frances Brown plays Wes's fiancé, offering moments of warmth and clarity, while Kyle Rowe's turn as the unpredictable Tommy brings a dangerous edge. The relationship between the two men becomes the film's anchor, exploring masculinity, loyalty and the struggle to escape a life already written in the margins.
Reputation premiered at the Spirit of Independence Film Festival where it earned early praise for its bold direction and stripped-back realism. It's a film that doesn't shy away from darkness but finds human drama in the fallout. With baby Vinnie at home and his father urging him to walk away, Wes faces a choice between survival and self-destruction.
Tense, emotional and grounded in harsh reality, Reputation is set for digital release in the UK on 28 July via Miracle Media. It's one to watch for fans of British crime stories that steer clear of cliché and cut to the bone.
