Kinky Boots

2005, UK/US, directed by Julian Jarrold

Another entry in the cycle of regional comedies that have been a staple feature of British cinema over the past ten years (though this one, unlike better-known examples such as The Full Monty, is a rare Midlands comedy), Kinky Boots is, on the surface, a tale of colliding moral values, namely the chaos caused by drag queen Lola (Chiwetel Ejiofor) when she descends on a shoe factory in sleepy Northampton to assist the owner with his efforts to move into a new market in the hopes of saving the family business. Deep down, though, it's a lament for an England that is fast disappearing; on the negative side, this means that the film does a pretty poor job of acknowledging the country's already changed social fabric (Northampton is remarkably mono-ethnic, while it's hard to believe that a flamboyant drag queen could really cause such disruption in this day and age), but the account of the disappearance of whole swathes of economic life is heartfelt.

Even if the film can't quite match the poignancy of Brassed Off, the sense of disappearing skills and craft is deeply affecting; one of the film's strongest moments comes when George, a factory stalwart, cuts through the distractions surrounding Lola to focus simply on the problem at hand, designing a boot for men; that his knowledge will simply be lost to future generations is the one thing unequivocally worth lamenting. Ejiofor provides the best reason of all to see the film: he's been among Britain's busier young actors since his breakthrough role in 2002's Dirty Pretty Things, appearing in films and television on both sides of the Atlantic, and his performance as both Lola and her alter ego Simon is vibrant, un-self-conscious and, at times, surprisingly moving.