Ashes - Ray Winstone holds it together

Most people will be more familiar with Ray Winstone as `tough-guy' characters, so perhaps that's one reason he's decided to take a break from `busting heads' and started to show the viewers that he's got more of a `sensitive' side.

In Ashes, he plays an Alzheimer sufferer who gets `kidnapped' by his son from the hospital he's been committed to and then taken on a roadtrip across England. Why? Well, that's something you have to find out.

The first thing you need to is that this certainly isn't a `feel-good' film. It's dark, nasty and certainly not light-hearted in any way. Its major plus-point is Ray Winstone. He plays the part perfectly, switching from scared bouts of violence, to just plain scared. He's the reason this film is worth watching, as the `story' is somewhat lacking. I was left wondering why exactly these two were driving across country, as it isn't really explained until about the hour mark. Although, that is the time when the film generally starts to pick up.

The first hour - excluding Ray's performance - is pretty hard to sit through. It doesn't really go anywhere and drags by. However, if you can excuse that, it does get better and the last act ties everything up.

If you're a fan of Ray then you'll enjoy this. Otherwise, you'll have to be in the mood for a very dark drama to get something out of this.

6/10 May just keep you awake if Freddy Krueger was haunting your nights