The gang were the victims

I've seen this film a few times and thought it was quite good.

However, the overwhelming majority of people seem to view the "gang" - fearlessly lead by Sonny - as the "bad guys", and Anthony as a "victim" of cruelty/suffering at their hands.

I think this is a widespread misconception and perhaps the director intentionally did this to skew the viewer's perception of who is "bad" and who is "good" or "innocent". We know Shane Meadows likes to mess with the viewer's head a bit in most of his films and I think this is a great example of that.

Let's look at a few things. The guys in the car (Herbie, Soz & Tuff) listening to some rap and having a good time. What's the harm in that. You may not like rap music but that doesn't make it okay to condemn them as evil people based on their listening choices. Sonny dresses up as a clown behind closed doors - clearly they have a sense of humour and don't take themselves too seriously. They're good lads overall imo.

We'll have a look at Anthony now. He is clearly a moron. Blubbering over the slightest little tiff and talking like someone spasticated his vocal cords. I know I would find him very annoying to be around if he were a real person and this is portrayed well by Toby Kebbell who really nailed the oafish, blundering portrayal of a mental cretin in a way that so few other actors have.

I think the real message of the film is that you get what you give, and Anthony's suicide was effectively karma for how he had failed to properly integrate himself with the gang. They gave him every opportunity to fall in line and have a bit of a laugh. He was practically bawling his eyes out over a bit of the wacky baccy. Very lame. They had every right to be pissed off with him during Mark's flashback towards the end of the film - they had wasted good LSD on a little crybaby mongboy who couldn't handle his acid and started crying for his big brother like a little 2 year old girl.

Don't get me started on Richard - the true menace in this film. Whereas Anthony was just stupid, Richard showed outright malice and jealousy towards Sonny's gang. He couldn't stand to see Herbie hanging round the pub, living his life and having a chat to his fellow man. He had to get all aggressive and I think Richard is truly the biggest coward of them all.

Right now you're probably thinking "Hogwash", but watch over the next few decades as people's perceptions about this film slowly change and they realize that it was Richard & Anthony who were at fault and the group of fellas they targeted who were truly misunderstood beings.

I'm not looking for you to agree. All I ask is that you see my point of view and please respect my opinion. Thank you.