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Once Upon a Time in the Midlands

2002 · 104 min

A gentle, bittersweet kitchen-sink romance with wry laughs, awkward warmth and a quiet tug of regret underneath.

Directed by
Shane Meadows
Genres
Romance, Comedy, Drama
Overview
Though Dek leads a simple and happy life with his girlfriend Shirley and her 12-year-old daughter Marlene, his grand, televised marriage proposal puts his devotion to the test—especially as Marlene's long-absent biological father, Jimmy, looms in the background.

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Directed by
Shane Meadows
Genres
Romance, Comedy, Drama
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How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • warmstrength 2 of 3
  • melancholicstrength 2 of 3
  • lightstrength 2 of 3
  • tensestrength 1 of 3
Pacing
measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
easy-watch, 2 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • love
  • family
  • parenthood
  • loyalty
  • betrayal
Places
  • small town
  • home
Era
contemporary
Audience
adult
Form
None
Content intensity
  • Gore none
  • Language mild
  • Violence mild
  • Sex mild
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action2
Horror0
Humour6
Realism8
Romance6
Tension4
Darkness3
Complexity4
Emotional weight5

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