Set in the Thatcherite 80's, this is going to be one hot summer for the skinheads living in Nottingham's unmemorable suburban streets. Early on, director Meadows introduces you to a likeable youngster called Shaun (Thomas Turgoose) who makes up for his lack of size, with the fact that he's precocious and not afraid to say what he thinks.

Shaun gets a lot of stick from older lads at school ('I didn't know Keith Chegwin had a younger brother') and lashes out when an older larger lad picks on him. Heading home one evening with the world's worries on his shoulders after a bad day at school, Shaun bumps in to a group of skinheads who initially seem menacing but soon befriend Shaun and encourage him to stick up for himself.

From there, Shaun's attentions will become the subject of a tug of love between two prominent skinheads in a gang - the kind and moderate Woody (Joe Gilgun) who is the first to befriend Shaun and rough racist ex-con Combo (Stephen Graham) who comes back to the town.

This is England is a great snapshot of the Thatcherite 80's and skinhead culture and offers an entertaining mix of humour and cutting-edge racial tension, supported by a well chosen soundtrack. There are plenty of times when you enjoy the jokes but fear that an overspill of violence is just around the corner. Strong points are the acting of Turgoose and Graham at the heart of it.

This is almost a throwback to Shane's earlier work - it reminded me of Small Time in its rawness and use of handheld camerawork and I could see the obvious link with Romeo Brass too. Shane sees it as a precursor to his other films.

This is England will appeal to fans of Shane Meadows with its echoes from his previous films: a stranger returns to town (as in Once upon a time in the Midlands), a youngster is befriended by an elder (as in Room for Romeo Brass). But for me, Meadows' best films are still two of his previous ones, namely Room for Romeo Brass and Dead Man's Shoes.