This is the true story of Billy Moore, a criminal from the UK who was involved in drugs and robberies before moving out to Thailand for a fresh start. He soon fell back into a life of crime though and was arrested in 2005 for gun offences. He was sentenced to three years in one of the most dangerous prisons in the country. The film is based on the book, written by Moore, which explained his remarkable story in every gory detail.

The film begins with some of the most brutal and violent scenes imaginable. The prison is a putrid mess, with inmates on the receiving end of some truly horrific behaviour from the evil prison staff. Billy Moore is played by Joe Cole, star of the hugely successful BBC show ‘Peaky Blinders’. Cole is quite magnificent from start to finish. His stint in ‘Peaky Blinders’ saw him get up to plenty of mischief and the odd scrap but nothing on the level of violence we see in this film. Cole does a superb job of capturing Moore’s relentless aggression and the never-say-die attitude needed to survive in this horrific prison.

At times, such is the nature of the violence, the film is almost unwatchable. There are several scenes that really stand-out as being extremely violent, so I’d definitely give this film a miss if you don’t want to see broken bones and scenes of torture.

Billy, like us viewers, is often terrified at his situation. Not being unable to understand the Thai language means he has only a basic knowledge of what is going on. After weeks of suffering Billy persuades a trainer to let him box and his talent gets him a ticket out of the grim overcrowded cells and into the cushier “boxing” cell. It’s a narrative we’ve seen many times before – boxing or fighting used as a means of escaping a life of suffering. His journey isn’t easy, and he faces some tough battles along the way.

The fight sequences, so often the major let-down when it comes to films like this, are superb and really make the film. I’ve seen world title fights with less excitement than the brutal scenes in this film. 

I really enjoyed this film. At just under two hours long the time flew by, always a good indicator. Joe Cole deserves all the plaudits he’s getting for the role of Billy Moore, it would be no surprise to see him get offered more roles off the back of this film.