Synopsis

Storyline:

Set in ’70s Kingston and ’80s Hackney, Yardie centres on the life of a young Jamaican man named D (Aml Ameen), who has never fully recovered from the murder, committed during his childhood, of his older brother Jerry Dread (Everaldo Creary). D grows up under the wing of a Kingston Don and music producer named King Fox (Sheldon Shepherd). Fox dispatches him to London, where he reconnects with his childhood sweetheart, Yvonne (Shantol Jackson), and his daughter who he’s not seen since she was a baby. He also hooks up with a soundclash crew, called High Noon. But before he can be convinced to abandon his life of crime and follow “the righteous path”, he encounters the man who shot his brother 10 years earlier, and embarks on a bloody, explosive quest for retribution – a quest which brings him into conflict with vicious London gangster Rico (Stephen Graham).

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User Reviews: I was lucky enough to go to a preview screening and Q&A with Idris Elba where he said to give it glowing reviews if we loved it and just mention his mum’s carpet (which makes an appearance in the film) if we didn’t. Unfortunately this film did not live up to all I’d hoped. The story itself is sound and would make a decent action movie plot but Idris seems to have tried to make something more gritty which falls flat for me. The broad accents slip on occasions sometimes intentionally and there is some stereotyping too. It’s a story of murder, revenge, drugs and Jamaican gang warfare with a reggae soundtrack which may sell better than the movie. I’m sure having Idris Elba’s name attached will help opening weekend ticket sales but I wouldn’t be surprised if this is on digital download on your TV screen in a month or two.