For Queen & Country

Reuben James, a Black British soldier, is attacked by IRA militants as he leaves a pub in Northern Ireland in 1979. The assault is interrupted when his fellow soldier Fish intervenes and saves his life. The event forges a lasting bond between the two men.

In 1982, Reuben and his friends Fish and Bob Harper fight in the Falkland Islands. The fighting is brutal and costly, and Fish loses his leg. The ordeal bonds the trio and foreshadows Fish's later life away from combat.

By 1988, Reuben leaves military life and returns to his impoverished London estate. He struggles to adjust to civilian life amid a hostile environment. His past loyalties pull him toward complex decisions about work and crime.

Reuben meets Colin, an old friend now a crime boss, who offers him a place in a drug-dealing operation. Reuben is wary and declines, hoping for a legitimate path forward. The moment highlights the tension between integrity and desperation.

Fish turns to gambling and wins big, planning to take Reuben to Paris as thanks for covering debts with Bob, who is now a policeman. He buys two Paris tickets to solidify their escape from the grinding life around them. The tickets symbolize a possible fresh start that remains out of reach.

Reuben and Fish are turned away from a nightclub by a bouncer. They end up spending the night drinking at Fish's flat, reflecting on life after service. The moment underscores their fragile sense of belonging and the limited 'escape' the Paris tickets promised.

Reuben's flat is burgled by Oscar and Hayley, and Stacey intervenes to help. Hayley returns home wearing Reuben's paratrooper beret, a painful reminder of his past. The intrusion tests Reuben's nerves and his grip on his civilian life.

Stacey eventually finds Reuben's campaign medals and returns them to him, restoring a link to his service. The medals symbolize personal dignity amid the street-level chaos around him. Their exchange reinforces the persistence of memory in shaping present choices.

Debbie gives birth early in the morning, prompting Reuben to help take Fish to the hospital. Fish hands him both Paris tickets, acknowledging that he cannot go himself. The moment binds the men in new obligations even as plans for Paris evaporate.

While preparing for Paris, Reuben learns a new nationality law strips him of British citizenship because he was born in Saint Lucia. The denial shatters his escape plan and he reluctantly agrees to work as Colin's muscle to survive. The moment marks a turning point toward deeper involvement in criminal activity.

Kilcoyne and other officers pressure Reuben to reveal who killed Harry, tying him to the escalating criminal web. Reluctantly, Reuben gives up Lynford, pulling him further into Colin's network. The betrayal crystallizes the moral compromises he's making.

Seeking an exit, Reuben obtains a St Lucian passport and buys a ticket to St Lucia, planning to return to his birthplace. The plan signals his desire to sever ties with the life he's entangled in. Yet the looming riot and police pressure stay with him.

Lynford and others gather weapons and prepare to fight the police as tensions on the estate erupt into a riot. A Molotov cocktail is thrown from a walkway, igniting violence. The escalation foreshadows the climactic confrontation.

As the riot subsides, a racist officer Challoner shoots Fish dead. Reuben retrieves his rifle and shoots Challoner in retaliation. The moment marks a brutal culmination of the day’s violence and the collapse of any easy exit.

A hesitant police sniper—revealed to be Bob—takes aim at Reuben. Ordered to fire, Bob shoots and kills Reuben as the conflict ends. The scene completes the tragedy of loyalty fractured by violence and circumstance.