Robert Carlyle will soon make his debut as Detective Constable Shaun Massie in the upcoming seventh season of Line of Duty, but the Scottish actor has plenty of big-screen credits to his name in an impressive career.
One of those is Once Upon a Time in the Midlands, a comedy-drama from acclaimed filmmaker Shane Meadows. Released in 2002, the Nottinghamshire-set film works in elements from the Spaghetti Western genre, often to comedic effect.
Carlyle portrays Jimmy, a small-time crook living in Glasgow who is distant from his ex-wife Shirley (Shirley Henderson) and daughter Marlene (Finn Atkins). After seeing them on a talk show, he ventures to Midlands to win them back, but faces a treacherous journey.
Related: Line of Duty star Martin Compston's "terrific" Glasgow-set crime drama is now streaming for free
Co-written by Meadows and Paul Fraser, the British film is currently available to stream for free in the UK, as it is on Channel 4. You'll have to hurry somewhat, however, as the listing is due to expire on 3 August.
In addition to the aforementioned names, the cast for the comedy-drama also includes Ricky Tomlinson, Kathy Burke, Rhys Ifans, James Cosmo and Andrew Shim, the latter of whom would work with Meadows again in the This Is England franchise.
What to Read Next
Though it garnered a mixed response from professional critics, Once Upon a Time in the Midlands was generally praised by viewers, who viewed it as a peculiar treat in Meadows's filmography.
On IMDb, the film currently has a user rating of 6.2/10 from 4,900 logs, with one user writing: "All members of the cast shine and it's fun to see a western style angle being adopted [for] the classic tale of a loner coming into town to win back his girl."
Related: Stephen Graham set to take over Robert De Niro role for "extraordinary" sequel to '90s crime classic
"I saw this film at its world premiere as part of Directors fortnight at Cannes, and I am glad to say that it surpassed all my expectations," they added in their 8/10 review, calling it an "excellent British film".
"Meadows's achievement is to allow his characters to behave humanely and realistically in situations that are often one step removed from realism," said another user, who called it a "small masterpiece" and a "delight from start to finish".
Once Upon a Time in the Midlands is available to stream on Channel 4.
Visit our Streaming Guide now to see at a glance where you can view ALL your favourite shows and movies.
The new edition of Living Legends, celebrating the global phenomenon of BTS, is here! Buy this ultimate fan guide in newsagents or online.
Reporter, Digital Spy George is a freelance writer who specialises in Movies and TV. After graduating with a degree in Film Studies and Journalism from De Montfort University, in which he analysed the early works of Richard Linklater for his dissertation, he wrote for several websites for GRV Media. His film tastes vary from blockbusters like Mission: Impossible and John Wick to international directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Hirokazu Kore-eda, and has attended both the London and Berlin film festivals.
