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TRUE STORY?
Blue Story: Ex-gangsters say ‘you can’t ban real life’ following violence outbreak over film
IT'S the film that has been blamed for sparking a mass brawl after around 100 young thugs armed with machetes and knives crashed a Birmingham cinema complex screening the movie on Saturday night.
But is Blue Story - a film about young people fighting in gang wars on London's streets - really to blame for this outbreak of violence?
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The mass brawl - which unfolded in front of terrified young children queuing with their parents to watch Frozen 2 - left seven police officers injured and saw at least five teens arrested.
Vue has since taken the rare decision to pull the BBC-backed film from its cinemas as a safety precaution, after "25 significant incidents" were reported at its venues within 24 hours of its release.
The incident comes as Britain battles a knife crime epidemic, with more than 100 violent killings in London alone this year and a growing number of kids caught up in 'county lines' drug gangs.
Yet while some have accused Blue Story of "stirring up violence", others have defended the no-holds-barred film as a hard-hitting work that shines a light on the bleak "real life" of teens across the UK.
Here, two former gang members defend their very different views on the film...
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'Teens gripped by gang culture are inspired by it and copy criminal activities'
Errol Lawson, from Birmingham, was a homeless, drug-taking street gangster in his teens.
He carried weapons, was involved in robberies and muggings and says his life was ruled by gangs.
He avoided prison, but was arrested a number of times and served 100 hours’ community service for theft.
Now a 39-year-old married dad, he's turned away from a life of crime and become an author.
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Errol tells Sun Online: "I've seen the film and I think it's given young people an excuse to vent their pain and trauma - similar to the 2011 London riots which started after a guy was shot by police.
The brawl in Birmingham was unprecedented - with total disregard for the law or families with children in the cinema.
Those involved had no morals to come into a public place with machetes.
There are going to be links drawn between the violence and Blue Story.
WHAT IS BLUE STORY ABOUT?
BLUE Story is a no-holds-barred gang film about postcode warfare in South London.
Bookended by documentary-style iPhone footage and TV news clips about gangs, guns and knife crime, the movie focuses on the story of teenagers Timmy and Marco.
Timmy, played by newcomer Stephen Odubola, lives in Lewisham but goes to school in Peckham, two parts of south-east London that have a notorious gang rivalry.
At school, he befriends Marco, portrayed by Michael Ward and best known for his role as Jamie in Top Boy, but over time their friendship is tested by the rivalry.
They end up on opposite sides as violence between the two factions increases. Love interest Leah is played by Karla-Simone Spence, currently playing Cali Okello in BBC drama Gold Digger.
The film is directed by rapper-turned-movie maker Andrew ‘Rapman’ Onwubolu, who hoped it would spotlight the futility of gang violence.
This week, he posted a message on Instagram saying that Blue Story was about "love not violence".
He also pointed out that the release of Batman prequel The Joker had also led to some incidents of violence - yet that film was not banned.
"It’s always unfortunate, but I hope that the blame is placed with individuals and not an indictment of the film itself," he wrote.
I don't think we can get away from the fact these young people are drawn to it.
The kids are gassed about it - they can't watch it on Netflix or the Internet. There's an energy around it.
I'm not blaming the film - there are some positive messages in there.
But when you're a teenager and you're gripped by that gangland reality, you're watching these guys [in violent gang films] and you're inspired by them.
I don't know whether they're even taking in the positive messages.
People are saying the decision to pull the film from Vue cinemas is racist. I don't believe it's racist, I believe there's a real, genuine safety concern. The film's doing well anyway.
For me, the question is - do we have to communicate these messages now, in the climate we're in?
Is this helpful?"
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WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING
Anti-gangs activist Gwenton Sloley, from London, tells Sun Online: "The film highlights the current environment the young people are living and trying to survive in. The incident in Birmingham shows that the problem of knife crime is a national one."
Mum Beverley Hurn, 52, from London, says: "What happened [in Birmingham] was terrible, but it went against the message of the film. The film was about how young boys do get into this gang lifestyle, and showing them the consequences, and they should stop."
Mark Eliades, 61, from Watford, says: "It's more credible and relevant to kids watching it than other violent films. Game Of Thrones has a hell of a lot of violence, but you don't have kids coming out beheading people. It's because they can relate to it. It's their age range, it's something that's real and they can see themselves, and they can copy it."
Anwar Semlali, 21, from London, says: "It absolutely should not have been pulled from cinemas - it's just completely unacceptable. The director behind it is up-and-coming, and he's from south London, and it's not uncommon for these kind of inconveniences to happen to this kind of demographic of people - black rappers."
Mark Herd, 60, from Barnet, says: "I don't blame the cinemas for stopping showing it. I would watch it in the safety of my own home."
Tony Saggers, former head of drugs at the National Crime Agency (NCA), tweeted: "Just watched Blue Story, the silence in the audience was deafening, even when finished. Outstanding film. I hope it with deter many. I fear it will encourage some. That's my balanced view. Accompanied by lived experience debrief & mediation - could be a game changer."
'Brawl could have happened during any film - this isn't about Blue Story'
Matthew Norford was a notorious gang leader of the Rusholme Mandem in Manchester, involved in shootings and kidnappings.
He deliberately groomed poor, vulnerable boys to join his gang.
By the time he was 16, he was already in jail for carrying Class A drugs, the first of a string of prison sentences.
Now aged 36, he's appalled at his past and works to help other kids avoid or leave gang life behind.
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Matthew tells us: "This brawl could have happened during any film. I don't think it was anything to do with Blue Story - it just happened because gangs were meeting up at the same venue to see it, and then fights broke out.
Saying Blue Story incites violence is like saying all Hollywood films do.
This film is essential in educating people because some are clueless about gangs.
The average Brit has no idea what's going on in the streets. It's young people's lives - it's real life.
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Although some kids might take in the action they see on the screen - the knives, the gang words - rather than the positive bits, it's still important to show it.
It's not fair to ban it when it's making such an impact. It also helps the actors get paid.
Now the film is in fewer cinemas, if I'm in a gang and you're in a different gang, there's a higher chance we're both going to go to the same one."
Blue Story film director Rapman says politicians trying to solve UK knife crime 'don't understand what they're tackling'
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