Baneet Sarai

The first shot of 7 Miles Out – of a black-and-white terraced house in Stockport – suggests we are about to see a weepy tale of provincial working-class hardship. Then the music kicks in. Riotously atmospheric hits from post-punk Manchester are the soundtrack to Carol Morley’s coming-of-age drama, which cloaks its musical outbursts in a diffuse haze of desaturated colours that create a nostalgic, dreamlike aesthetic. Morley may ditch the black and white two seconds in, but there is plenty of sadness in this story, which is based on her own semi-autobiographical novel. Spanning three stages of Ann’s adolescence (played as a child by Amelie Hughes and as a teenager by Lucy Halliday), the film begins with the promise of middle-class life, symbolised by a new job in Manchester for Ann’s dad, Ronald (Aidan Gillen), and the car that comes with it. But this reverie is soon shattered when a traumatic event destabilises Ann’s life, her childhood idealism giving way to the self-destructive behaviour of her teenage years.  Riotously atmospheric hits soundtrack Morley’s coming-of-age drama As in her wider filmography, Morley is interested in what makes a person who they are. This time, it’s herself. 7 Miles Out is the PG version of her story, already immortalised with gritty authenticity by her acclaimed documentary The Alcohol Years (2000). Here, she has instead opted for a refreshingly colourful, warm-hearted approach that dispatches its fair share of suicide, depression and underage

Imagine if the kids in Skins celebrated leaving school by making itineraries and heading off on a graduation adventure. That’s the world brought to us by London filmmaker Sasha Nathwani in his feature debut, a touching – if often stereotypical – look at Gen Z-ers heading into adulthood, complete with voice notes, astrophysics, and a crippling fear of living through uncertain times. Deba Hekmat gives a nuanced performance as Ziba, an Iranian-British teen struggling to find meaning in the face of a life-altering revelation. It’s A-level results day and Ziba and her eclectic group of friends are celebrating their freedom by attempting to control the existential dread of adulthood with a celebratory itinerary. Travelling from one London landmark to the next, it’s an ideal tourist’s day out; Portobello Road, Hampstead Heath, Billionaires’ Row and finally, Primrose Hill.  Nathwani’s Indian-Iranian heritage gives his depiction of merging cultures an authentic and refreshing twist – the opening scene cleverly questions what society expects from a non-white teenage girl without being overly moralising. Ziba’s relationship with her unwaveringly affectionate mother (Narges Rashidi) is genuinely touching, a rejection of the austere immigrant parent stereotype. There’s no shortage of intimate moments, particularly in the case of young footballer Malcolm (scene-stealing newcomer Denzel Baidoo). He’s a friend of a friend reluctantly allowed to tag along for reasons that are superficial at b