The Alleys

Set in narrow labyrinthian streets of East Amman, Jordan, The Alleys is a film that while not having too much original going for it, is filmed with such verve that the viewer will be sucked in, note this or that bit, but remain with the story to the end.

The film opens with the secret affair between Ali (Emad Azmi) and Lana (Baraka Rahmani) the former scrambling out of the window as soon a hears Lana’s mother is around. Mother Aseel (Nadira Omran), a hairdresser, has higher aims for her daughter. Ali is little more than a cab driver who takes naive tourists to sleazy clubs, for a fee. These places are in turn forced to pay protection to Abaas (Monzer Reyahnah) the local crime boss.

Getting on the wrong side of him can mean death or a beating, in Ali’s case he’s lucky and just gets barred from taking clients there, hence ruining his livelihood. At the same time someone has secretly filmed Ali and Lana’s meetings and is blackmailing Aseel.

Turning to Abaas and his top aide Hanadi (Abd Elhadi) for help, he agrees but there’s cost in that he’s going to send his ‘girls’ to have their hair and make-up done there. These aren’t the sort of women that Aseel wants anywhere near her business but she has no choice.

These plot strands start to intertwine, also bringing in other characters which debut writer and director Bassel Ghandour spreads throughout the film. It's a gamble to build such a large cast but crucially they aren’t lost, and each has a place. There’s a pacy comic caper element to it though that black comedy skates close to the edge, of just being bleak.

The backstories of the major players are told though flashback, giving an idea of how they became who they are. There’s no hiding from the violence or the pain that some of these people went through then consequently prepared to dish out.

The players are all very good though standing out is Elhadi as the sly vicious Hanadi; an intelligent, malevolent presence, who can’t be read.

There are shades of Gomorrah the series in The Alleys with the depressing impression that organised crime is endemic and perversely, a lifeblood for the community. Like that series there’s the criminal gangs fighting their turf wars, while their influence seeps and contaminates almost every aspect of the neighbourhood’s daily life.

The Alleys will be available of digital platforms from 5 December.