A film by Ben Drew, AKA Plan B starring Riz Ahmed
‘A film for our times’
SIMONE BAIRD – TIME OUT
iLL MANORS is the highly anticipated directorial debut by British music artist Ben Drew (aka Plan B), taking viewers on a thrilling ride through action and music. The film stars highly acclaimed British Asian actor and musician Riz Ahmed in the lead role.
The first of its kind, iLL MANORS is a bold and visually stunning unique crime thriller, harrowing and shocking, yet laced with street-wise humour. Set in the backdrop of the unforgiving streets of London, the film follows six disparate lives, all struggling to survive the circles of violence that engulf them.
iLL MANORS revolves around a series of events that inter-weave between characters and their narrative interplay: Junkie Michelle (Anouksa Mond) is looking for her next hit, leading her to cross a destructive path with the raw and menacing thuggery of Ed (Ed Skrien) the local drug-dealer, who will stop at nothing to find his missing phone. Newly released from prison, ex-drug dealer Kirby (Keith Coggins), attempts to re-adjust back into the treacherous streets that put him away 15 years ago, and in doing so encounters local gangster Chris (Lee Allen), on his own warpath, and out for revenge. The youngest of them all is Jake (Ryan Dela Cruz Indianda), who finds a dark and icy acceptance in a local gang lead by Marcel (Nickolas Sagar). The outsider, Katya (Natalie Press), races through the London streets to escape her sex traffickers and stumbles upon Aaron (Riz Ahmed), the central protagonist, just trying to do the right thing – but torn between his head and his heart.
“My main characters were based on every single adult I know – because we spend our entire adult lives trying to fix the things that someone – our parents or someone – broke inside of us when we were kids ,” said Ben ‘Plan B’ Drew.
Ahmed, who was hand-picked for the role of Aaron by Ben Drew says of his character: “Aaron was someone who I felt like I hadn’t played before, because he’s someone who lives in a really kind tough environment, but who is really vulnerable. He’s a lot softer than he’s forced to make out, so I thought that was a really interesting and challenging combination.”
Riz concludes: “I think we can all relate to both my character and to the characters in iLL MANORS in general, even if our lives aren’t as messy or troubled as theirs. I hope that audiences will go on the same journey that I went on in developing Aaron’s character; which is that it’s not necessarily the same as my life at all, but the writing and the characterisation of the story draws you into it, until you invest enough and you feel like that person is fighting your battle.”
