User reviews

This TV Movie is not Full Metal Jacket, or any other military film focused on coming of age which I have seen. Its heroine is not an introspective youth contemplating the truth of what is going on with the world around her. Instead, she is a highly common modern girl who chances upon the British Army. Like all films of its genre, there is a good deal of yelling and screaming, this is after all boot camp. The characters though do not display heroism or bravado through their yells or screams. Instead it is shown in soft spoken scenes which chronicle Molly's progression. The yelling and screaming is there to create the boot camp atmosphere, not to build character or to be the centre of the film.

Some plot holes do exist, and some of the side characters could have done with much more development. However when the constraints of a 90 minute TV Movie, which certainly with the BBC's current climate did not have a very large budget, are applied, these faults become understandable. Also, while I am not sure, I get the feeling that scenes where these grey areas in the plot and the characters are fleshed out were written, but left out do to time constraints.

I personally think that Molly speaks to all of us who once dreamed of being in the Army. She is simply an ordinary girl who is given the opportunity to apply herself, and finds that she capable of much more than she thought possible. All of us have a little bit of ourselves that likes to think so. Through her journey Molly most certainly fulfils that part of ourselves which dares to dream upon a whim.

I'm a sucker for these films especially if they involve women. One of my favorite of all time if Private Benjamin with Goldie Hawn. Of course there are differences for example she is a wealthy American woman whose husband dies on the first night so the starting point is slightly different from that of a British girl from a London council estate but the story is the same they both are devalued by their families they both are expected to live vacuous life responding to the clichés that surrounds them and they find a purpose in the army. I think the scene I liked most is when she confronts her father outside the pub and the reading of the letter is really poignant. I quite liked also the TV news commentary at the end asking at what cost the war in Afghanistan has been sustained for 11 years, it was a nice touch few people might have noticed.

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning

Mollie Dawes (Lacey Turner) is a typically (or so East Enders would have you believe) upfront, balsy South London girl, whose life is a bit of a shambles, what with an abusive father, cheating immigrant lover and false friends. One night, after throwing up at the entrance to an Army Recruitment Centre, she believes she's found the key that can turn her life around. Despite no encouragement from all those around her, she plods on with it, in time her cocky front broken down and built back up again to build her in to a better character.

There are those ex East Enders who simply fade in to obscurity and are lucky to be seen performing panto again, and those who seem determined to make their post Walford career in to something a bit more lively. Lacey Turner would seem to be one such example, appearing in this ambitious one off BBC drama, that feels pretty workmanlike and unsurprising for the most part, but still has the odd flashes of class to raise itself up.

It opens in a depressingly familiar environment from where a lot of these gritty kitchen sink dramas tend to start in, and feels so unsurprising because most of the characters behave in exactly the way you expect them to, not all that convincingly played by all the performers. As the main character, the vast bulk of it rests on Turner's shoulders, and she is the one we're kept with till the end, on the way incurring a rather shocking, gratuitous sex scene that comes out of nowhere, on to the end which ends on a more touching and poignant note than you might expect. It's an interesting and well written role, and had it had a bigger budget and maybe some better actors and director, it could have been even more than it is. But as it is, you still can't see Turner's, quite possibly one of 'the squaire's' better performers, post EE career going belly up if she keeps going with meaty stuff like this. ***

I must say that this Film 'Our Girl' is one of the most compelling things i have watched for a very long time. I felt it was so fantastic that i have watched it several times this week and i have expressed the same emotion (cry) every time i have watched it. Lucy Turner takes the title role of a London girl who has a very chaotic life who feels that she wants more from it than she and those around her have. She ends up in an Army recruitment office and the story of how she ends up there becomes clear as you watch the film. As the film progresses and i felt that it was compelling watching you see Molly Dawes (Lucy Turners character name) change her outlook on life and develop qualities and attributes which she had always had but she was not aware of them.Her friendship with Katie a fellow recruit who came from Leyland who had self confidence issues and how they helped each other achieve what they both wanted was an added bonus to this story. The very moving way that the corporal brought the best out of Molly was well done. This whole film is worth watching time and time again and each time i watch it i can see so many different things that the writers wanted to express and bring to our screens. The ending of this film is so well written and acted that my tears flowed even more. Well done BBC and Lucy and everyone who brought this to our viewing. I must say that after watching this I sent a text to each of my three daughters telling them how very proud of them i am and what they have each achieved in life which was not always easy for them either. This Film is a must watch. I know it was only a one off film but if the BBC were to do a series on Molly Dawes i feel it would be compelling viewing.

To tell you the truth, I've never been much of a fan of Lacey Turner, from her East Enders days playing Stacey, although her character Molly is similar in ways to the character Stacey, Lacey's acting for me has improved and my mind's Been changed now I've watched this. She plays the lead role in this and quite rightly too, If you get the chance to watch Our Girl please do so, it was funny in parts but overall it was a gritty drama. Compelling viewing from start to finish. Great acting from the whole cast. I've read that there might be a full series of Our Girl, I hope this is true, there is enough scope for this to be made, I'm already looking forward to it.

Considering her annoying family, a cheating boyfriend and worthless friends, being in danger of getting blown up every day probably doesn't seem like such a bad move for Ms Dawes. And indeed, this whole enterprise might as well be bankrolled by the army... the camaraderie and discipline she has in the force is in stark contrast to her pitiful existence back home, where no-one likes her and every day is a drudging chore. In fact, it looks like so much fun, can I enlist? (What do you mean, spare tyre?!)

Joking aside though, by far the best parts of this BBC film are those when she's at training camp blossoming from a smart-mouthed little girl with issues... to a smart mouthed-little girl with issues, and a great big gun. Her friendships with her commanding officer and a fellow recruit who has self esteem issues are touching on a few levels, and Lacey Turner's performance as the feisty 18 year old is out of this world.

Les convincing though, is her time spent back in Newham, as her father is an irredeemable caricature of every child's worst nightmare, and her boyfriend is such a lying, manipulative sack of... manure, you wonder how such a smart girl like Molly ever hooked up with such a piece of... dirt. AND her lifelong mates turn on her at the drop of a hat. It's not very logical, and drives down the realism in the rest of the film. Still, it does pack a punch... and the poignant ending will leave you with a lump in your throat. Or maybe, I should try swallowing harder? 6/10

Within minutes this had me gripped. So well written and such emotion portrayed from Lacey Turner. Incredibly well put together and along with series one of Our Girl - a brilliant watch.

Our Girl started as a one off film written by Tony Grounds before it was developed by the BBC as a regular television series.

Lacey Turner is Molly Dawes, a teenager in Newham, living in an overcrowded house with her siblings. Mum (Kerry Godliman) is pregnant again, Dad (Sean Gallagher) is a bit of a layabout and an unpleasant racist and sexist of the east end type.

Molly's boyfriend is a young Muslim who also is another worthless individual who easily cheats on her and really does not value her.

So Molly who looks like a bright girl, seems to already have a life which is taking her nowhere with people who are just shiftless. Molly ends up joining the army which gives her life purpose and self esteem.

The problem is her family and boyfriend are left befuddled by her decision.

However basic training allows her to turn her life around and give her life renewed purpose as she makes new friends and finds out that it is better to help out fellow recruits rather than be a put upon babysitter at home.

The series started out with a lot of grittiness of inner London domestic life. Lacey Turner puts in a convincing performance as Molly and it is a refreshing positive portrayal of army life, not sure whether it is very realistic vision of army life and does felt a bit like propaganda as well.

Yet the film was better than the subsequent series in my opinion and at least it offered a positive note that a person can have the courage of their convictions to turn their life around.

Molly Dawes lives with her father, mother and multitude of siblings in a working class area of London. She's just turned 18 but instead of a feeling of euphoria all she sees is problems. Her boyfriend is unfaithful, she doesn't like her job and her father is a deadbeat. So she decides to join the Army.

A movie-length first episode of the series, so don't expect any nice neat resolutions or Hollywood endings. It's reasonably good without being great. We see Molly's background, which is a bit of a drag. This part seems quite predictable and seems to just delay the inevitable.

Once she's in the Army the film gets much more interesting as we see her having to make decisions regarding her future and having to adapt to Army life. There's a few overly neat and convenient plot developments but it's pretty good, good enough for me to stick with the series.

I Wasn't a fan of series 1 of Our Girl, didn't like Lacy Turner as lead and didn't like the way the story progressed throughout the first series so when I heard it was coming back for a second season I was going to give it a miss until I heard Michelle Keegan was to take up the lead role so I decided to give it a chance and I am glad I did.

Keegan knocks it out of the park and then some. Series 2 will keep you on the edge of your seat. If you like War drama's and high adrenaline rushes then Our Girl series 2 is for you.

Keegan's performances have seriously surprised me transitioning from Soap to a Drama is never easy and she has something in her arsenal that Turner was missing. I love Our Girl now and will be watching every episode from now on. Eyes glued to set. Love it.

Season 1 is the best season of our girl series. I like the characters they act very realistic. Lacy and Ben Aldridge are doing a brilliant job in this series. This is my favorite series of Our girl. And I've watched it more than 20 times but still love to watch it again and again. This is my favorite show of all time. Molly and Captain James are incredible characters. When I watch this season it takes me so deep into Afghanistan vibes. Smurf is awesome and the rest of the platoon guys are killing it. This season is worth watching. I've recommended it to all my friends and everyone is getting obsessed with it. To my knowledge It makes so many girls to dare thinking about joining the army. This is a masterpiece.

If there's any downside in Britain stopping conscription ( And I don't believe there is any downside to this ) it's that the general mainstream civilian knowledge of the military is rather ignorant , uninformed or misinformed . Certainly no one was happier than the British military forces themselves when conscription was scrapped in this country in 1960 but media depictions of the British military rarely paint a convincing picture with one or two very notable exceptions like the late 1970s ITV drama SPEARHEAD and this BBC drama entitled OUR GIRL is the latest in a long line to not get it right

One gets the feeling it's produced as more of a star vehicle for some soap opera actress in this case Lacey Turner a former EASTENDERS regular who plays protagonist Molly Dawes in much the same way as a not very good actress would play a role in EASTENDERS . You don't really get the impression you're watching a real character called Molly Dawes who exists in the real world , more of a caricature of the BBC view of urban teenage girls from the East End of London . Also despite the use of some strong language in a very vain attempt to make this seem like a tough gritty real life drama involving the military it does have a very BBC 3 cheap production value feel to it . I wasn't expecting APOCALYPSE NOW style helicopter assaults filmed in Afghanistan but even so the budget seems lacking

Artistic license such as a protagonist miraculously staggering around and stopping to vomit outside an army recruitment office thereby setting up a very weak inciting incident can be forgiven but a " realistic portrayal of the modern day British army " ( it says here ) it's somewhat lacking . Molly actress woman just passes the one and a half mile within the set time but no one mentions what this set time should be ! I've no idea what it is in 2013 but do know that it was 7 minutes 30 seconds in 1988 for most recruits and I guess if I really wanted to know what it was in 2013 google would be my friend . Also you don't address female officers as " Ma'am " it's always " sir " regardless of gender etc etc . Remind me what branch of CND the military adviser was in ?

Some people might say it's good that the BBC are showing the military in a good light but would this be the same television company who employed the likes of Rageh Omar who was the station's main correspondent during the invasion of Iraq who equated that conflict with Vietnam simply because both countries have palm trees ! and who constantly used the phrase " heavy coalition casualties " when daily coalition fatalities were in single figures . I can't think of the BBC making any dramas showing the British military in a good light since the Pertwee era of DOCTOR WHO and even then that was fighting alien invasions . Pro military ? When you've got the BBC as allies who needs enemies