filmgaze.com - Part 23

Tarzan 3D **

Posted: 10/05/2014

‘The King of the Jungle’ and his man-ape antics are not deemed enough to keep the 2014 kid engaged, it seems. Well, that appears to be the case, with German company Constantin Films’ new take of Tarzan – all in 3D. For those who know the Edgar Rice Burroughs’ character, this animated Tarzan becomes emerged in an Avatar/Superman/Kingdom of the Crystal Skull/Jurassic Park/environmental campaign. Let’s just say he has more to contend with IN the jungle than Crocodile Dundee ever did out of it.

The story is pretty much the same; this time though, we get a bit of back-story into the boy who grows to become the ‘ape man’. Derek lives with his explorer/scientist father – and wealthy CEO of Greystoke Energies – and mother in the depths of the jungle until one day, the family decide to travel back home part of the way by helicopter. On the way, they make a cursed detour that will prove fatal for some.

Derek wakes to find himself alone in the jungle and gets ‘adopted’ by a female gorilla mourning a personal loss, as well as some of the rest of the primate group. Derek grows into Tarzan (voiced by Twilight’s Kellan Lutz). His simple life is eventually turned upside down by the arrival of the beautiful Jane Porter (voiced by Spencer Locke) and the current, unscrupulous CEO of his father’s old corporation, hell-bent on exploiting the natural and curiously strange resources. Tarzan must save Jane and the jungle life.

Not only is there a sinister nature to the facial animation of writer-director Reinhard Klooss’ Tarzan, but also, it’s clear – after you’ve adjusted to the 3D specs – this is a dubbed film from German to English when you concentrate on the characters’ speech in particular. In the current climate of perfectly formed Pixar films, this is a little too obvious and frankly unforgivable. The only saving grace is the immense detail of the surroundings that is awe-inspiring and really submerges you into the lush habitat. Hence, you feel Tarzan’s determination to save it.

There are some beautifully realised ape scenes that show Klooss and co have done their wildlife homework well, and studied the nature of primates in their environment – and not afraid to tackle serious subjects like death. Parents do not fear; it is done with kids in mind though, but there may be some explaining to do afterwards, more out of young curiosity.

The biggest issue this film has is it’s rammed with so many concepts, complete with a bizarre sci-fi angle that just feels ‘desperate’ on the creators’ part, as if kids would bored easily with just vine-swinging action. It seems to borrow a lot from other films too, so much so, it becomes very samey. By the time the kids hear the famous Tarzan call, they either a) have not registered it, or b) have no idea of the significance of this for this historic fictional character. That feels like a great waste – even after explaining the significance to unmoved, accompanying youngsters before the film began.

Tarzan 3D thus feels like a frustrating introduction for kids today, purely because Tarzan’s got too much on his plate in the story, distracting from our focus on him as an intriguing character. The love story alone would have been more powerful with maybe the ‘save the natural resources of our planet’ angle. But really, Tarzan in a sci-fi film? Still, here’s betting no one thought Indiana Jones would get entangled with aliens in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull so anything’s possible with access to special effects, however bonkers.

2/5 stars

By @FilmGazer

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The Amazing Spider-Man 2 ****

by lgileskeddie

Posted: 18/04/2014

The sequel to Marc Webb’s 2012 reboot was always going to be bigger, punchier and more stuffed with effects to satisfy the crowd. Thankfully, even though these qualities are abundant – in a bid to not lose out to Marvel’s Avengers, some might say – the second 3D film in the series does not forget the intriguing pairing of star Andrew Garfield opposite Emma Stone. In fact, it develops their nuanced relationship as Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy further in this, still with a youthful tone that gives Peter a ‘Peter Pan’ vulnerability.

Juggling ruthless villains, saving bystanders, graduating, investigating his parents’ untimely disappearance and a sizzling relationship with his secret Spidey identity at the best of times, Peter Parker in his alter ego of The Amazing Spider-Man is unintentionally creating and collecting more enemies with a personal grudge. Enter Electro (Jamie Foxx) and Green Goblin (Dane DeHaan), the latter once Peter’s old school friend Harry Osborn, but now heir to his recently departed father’s giant Osborn Corporation. Meanwhile, Peter still feels guilty about dragging Gwen into potential danger, after promising her dead father (a ghostly Denis Leary) to keep her safe and away from trouble.

Webb keeps things ticking along thrillingly in the opening scenes that are reminiscent of The Dark Knight in action-packed stunts to keep us breathless for more to come. It is a senses overload. The fate of the Parker parents is sewn up in this for those happy with some padded back-story to clear them of all abandonment charges of the crushingly sensitive Peter. But this is not the film’s sticking point.

What is, is the danger of it becoming like Spider-Man 3 (2007) with too many villains in play who are thrown into the arena but never fully developed so we understand their personal transformation. Indeed, Colm Feore’s scheming Donald Menken of the Osborn boardroom is thinly used just as a plot driver for the Goblin’s birth, for example, in a spurious sub-plot. Even Felicity Jones’s Felicia is squandered, another intriguing female character with an intriguing character arc that does not go anywhere in this.

That said Foxx’s neon-glowing baddie Electro may well get his finest hour against Spider-Man but even he is side-stepped in the interest stakes by DeHaan’s emerging Goblin that Electro’s electrifying head-to-head finale does not burn as brightly as you would expect, and is again used as a plot driver for Gwen.

Perhaps the problem for all these surplus villains, but ironically the best aspect of the film is the powerhouse trio of Garfield, Stone and DeHaan’s characters that are explored for all their faults, weaknesses and troubles that anyone else pales into insignificance. Webb does well to make the Peter-Gwen love affair more alive and tricky in this, cultivating some incredibly realistic squabbles and touchingly funny moments, as well as some harrowing ones that cements Gwen as a significant character in her own right.

It is DeHaan’s gig though, whenever he is on screen, re-emphasising the actor’s acting prowess, even opposite Garfield who is given ample space to take Peter on an even greater emotional ride this time. DeHaan commands the screen as the wounded and angry young heir, and his transformation into villainy is even more striking because like Electro – who gets a brief scene to ‘turn anti-Spidey’ in stereotypical fashion, he does not want to become a monster but is resigned to his fate. This is the crux of The Amazing Spider-Man series that all involved are ‘damaged goods’ trying to fit into a sense of normality, whatever that might be.

Webb fans will not be disappointed with his second film and spending 3D bucks on it, though perhaps a tad frustrated with the overload of undeveloped baddie leads. They will love the next saga in the Peter-Gwen story that reaches a crescendo and increases the Parker pain while revelling in a cocker, more agile Spider-Man this time. As a result of great casting, this franchise leaves you wanting more so the Spider-Man is still amazing and can easily hold its own against the Avengers clan.

4/5 stars

By @FilmGazer

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LFF 2013: We Are The Best! *****

by lgileskeddie

Posted: 13/04/2014

There is an instant vitality and endearing quality to Swedish writer-director Lukas Moodysson’s new coming-of-age drama Vi är bäst! (We Are The Best!) that gradually warms from within. It’s not just the experimental buzz of youth and the promise of reliving your memories through the voice of punk music, but being placed in a privileged position as a viewer to re-experience those key moments when adulthood beckons. Moodysson’s colourful production offers just that, inviting us into the personal lives of three young girls growing up at an exciting and pivotal age, a clash of innocence and anarchy at play.

It’s Stockholm in the 1980s and punk is not quite dead. 13-year-old punk music lovers Bobo (Mira Barkhammar) and Klara (Mira Grosin) decide to form a band when a prank at a local youth centre escalates – the trouble is neither of them can play an instrument. They call upon the string-plucking talents of loner Hedvig (Liv LeMoyne), a good Christian girl who is befriended by them and asked to join the band. As their music develops, so too, do their relationships blossoming on the brink of adulthood, complete with the difficult choices of such a tender age that could threaten their tight bond and their band’s future.

Moodysson takes partner Coco Moodysson’s comic novel and really fleshes out the three characters, giving them real emotion, challenges and ‘normal’ complex family backgrounds. We get to know Bobo and Klara in particular, skulking around in overgrown woolly jumpers and each sporting individual statement hairdos, long before the real transformation is awakened by their music. Their enthusiasm and determination to be different in an androgynous fashion is infectious and ultimately fun to watch, then we are helpless to witness the harrowing ride when adulthood is less than kind.

All three young actresses excel in their roles, totally natural in front of the camera that it’s quite unbelievable they make their debut here. Grosin is like a smaller version of Rooney Mara in the making, an exciting firecracker of talent to watch burn brighter, and Barkhammar and LeMoyne have equally rosy futures, thanks to some great casting.

The story weaves in relevant social issues without being glaringly obvious or preachy, so complimenting the anti-system roots of punk. What’s further refreshing is how passionate these kids are about their music from the start, so the initial comical situation we find this budding musical enlightenment in – affluent, (but screw-up, as is always the case with Scandi dramas) suburban Sweden – soon feels very poignant and fitting. It’s the perfect setting for something exciting and fresh to emerge. The punk music in the film is background noise really, a brief lesson in Scandi punk, but it’s the ‘we hate sport’ song the girls pen from a local perspective that sticks for anyone who hated gym at school – or even school itself.

Rightfully so, We Are The Best! title aptly suits Moodysson’s charming and winning journey into adulthood, accompanied by a music style that encourages a venting of mixed emotions, as well as the chance to continuously strive for better, and seek fulfilment through musical change.

5/5 stars

By @FilmGazer

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The Quiet Ones ***

by lgileskeddie

Posted: 13/04/2014

Hammer Films attempts to recapture its glory days with new horror The Quiet Ones, designed to play mind games while gradually unsettling the viewer as to the ethics of what transpires. It all sounds like a solid, nostalgic premise with a touch of the demonic – though reliant on our faith in what we witnessing through the fallback words of ‘inspired by actual events’. In fact, rather than continue to question the colourful individuals’ mindsets to really set the cat amongst the pigeons, it reverts back to obvious horror-flick shock tactics as a safety net, without being confident of trying something new.

Set in the 1970s, and based on Dr. A.R.G. Owen’s real-life ‘Philip Experiment’ – the creation of ghosts through focused mind power, university professor Coupland (Jared Harris) leads a team of student researchers, Krissi (Erin Richards) and Harry (Rory Fleck-Byrne), on an a controversial supernatural exploration of how ghosts are ‘invented’, involving experiments on a young and seemingly disturbed girl called Jane Harper (Olivia Cooke). Naïve, young cameraman Brian (Sam Claflin) catches events on film, growing increasingly troubled by what he is witnessing.

What sounds like something exciting and fresh on paper soon becomes the norm on film; the doe-eyed girl in white nightie with split personality locked in a room and having episodes that shake the foundations while her ‘captors’ try and avoid her demonic wrath. Indeed, Cooke does a superb job of the mediocre writing material in keeping us intrigued as to whether her current predicament is self-induced or otherwise, mixing fragility with a sinister, attention-seeking strength that plays nicely opposite Clafin’s protective and naïve nature as he is sucked in. The other actors also deliver reliable performances, none more so than Harris who is needed as the commanding figure in the fold, playing manipulative despot with a lethal charm, almost satanic in himself.

And this is where director John Pogue’s film could have elevated itself above the rest of the chiller thrillers: the quietly subconscious exposé of the people doing the experiment, which is of more disturbing and psychological interest here. Even Brian’s involvement does not go uncriticised as he is a willing party to an extent, and has questionable feelings for the ‘subject’. Coupland is rich for the picking, especially as some of his past is flagged near the end, as well as his growing sadistic nature. Instead, we get bizarre ectoplasm spewing, clawing moments and prompted jumps, all to the noisy soundtrack of rock band Slade. There is an attempt at character exploration but not enough – such as a brief dalliance between teacher and student that just comes off as an excuse for a dirty older man to paw a younger model. Other ‘paranormal’ occurrences are left hanging too, leading to a feeling of being short-changed.

There is also the head-scratching flaw of ‘found-footage’ films where the camera op becomes the front-of-camera subject – so who’s filming? The Quiet Ones does an excellent job of reproducing the soft-focused cinematography of the 70s in parts, accentuating the sexual hedonism of the times but then abruptly mixes this with more modern-styled horror production techniques that don’t quite marry together – better the former to recapture the full Hammer heyday effect.

In short, The Quiet Ones is a confused concept with great, star-quality performances that are its saving grace. It is chocked full of great ideas and could have been so much more. The studio should have had more faith in the intriguing psychology of its real-life and inspiring back-story rather than to cheapen it with the usual horror tropes, some of which are getting a tad tiring.

3/5 stars

By @FilmGazer

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The Motel Life ***

by lgileskeddie

Posted: 13/04/2014

The Polsky Brothers, Alan and Gabe’s directorial debut, The Motel Life, is a gradual and quietly moving, low-key affair. It’s an adaptation of Richmond Fontaine frontman Willy Vlautin’s 2007 novel of the same name, pivoting on the central character-driven performances from Emile Hirsch and Stephen Dorff – the latter of which, especially, re-emphasises the actor’s often forgotten talent here.

Frank (Hirsch) and Jerry Lee Flannigan (Dorff) are brothers and orphans, two of life’s perpetual losers but sharing a strong sibling bond. As boys, they make a promise to their dying mother to stick together, whatever. Their existence since has been living in motel rooms, with alcoholic Frank’s stories and one-legged Jerry Lee’s animations as their much-needed escapism. One night, Jerry Lee returns to their rented room to reveal he was involved in a hit and run, resulting in the death of a small boy. Panicked, the brothers decide to move on, but not before Jerry Lee winds up in hospital. Meanwhile, as Frank gathers what they need to go back on the road, he decides to make contact at their destination with his old love, Annie (fleeting appearance by Dakota Fanning), the daughter of a prostitute.

Starting on a low ebb, this story could have spiralled out of control into a glut of self-indulgent despair, but it’s tenderness and ironic ‘hope’ – stemming from the brothers’ will to survive and their obvious talents – keep things on an even keel as events around them unravel. Without the stimulating adult animation (buxom naked ladies and scenes of mutilation) and David Holmes’ score, it’s debatable whether this film offers anything new to the indie road movie genre, as the brothers’ predicament seems all too familiar.

That said Dorff effortlessly paints a miserable and tragic figure as Jerry Lee opposite Hirsch as Frank who is as unlucky as his brother, except for one enlightening moment where both Frank and you believe his luck is changing. This gives the otherwise hapless tale a little boost of inspiration.

The actors share a very intimate scene that is simple and beautifully enacted, both tender and heartfelt to highlight the unconditional sibling bond. Nevertheless, the low-key nature of the rest of The Polskys’ bleak plot means some of the nuances in the brothers’ very different characteristics are sometimes overshadowed by the sudden inject of the stark animation that chops up the scene as things get interesting with the characters themselves. Still, the ending manages to marry the uneven parts, tugging at the heartstrings as hope finally wins through.

The Motel Life will share a very special place in an indie fan’s heart, someone who appreciates a simple story about the strength of sibling unity when the chips are down. The real tragedy is The Polsky Brothers’ well-meaning tale may not have enough of the compelling characters of other such films or the edgy drama to travel the full distance at the box office.

3/5 stars

By @FilmGazer

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LFF 2013: Afternoon Delight *****

by lgileskeddie

Posted: 31/03/2014

Writer-director Jill Soloway does for Kathryn Hahn (Revolutionary Road) what Paul Feig did for Kristen Wiig in Bridesmaids, and given a very naturally funny lady a leading role – albeit, Wiig did co-write herself a part in the 2011 film. Hahn is a total triumph as bored, affluent Jewish housewife Rachel who has access to everything she desires but is just not happy. An exploration of ‘money can’t buy happiness’ here, Afternoon Delight certainly pours cold water on the supposed domestic bliss of the middle-class, stay-at-home mum. It’s a little darker and more poignant than Desperate Housewives, but it has the same destructive nature at play, with Hahn in the driver’s seat.

Thirtysomething mother-of-one and housewife Rachel (Hahn) is fed up having to attend the local Jewish social function scene and living the ‘perfect’ Silverlake lifestyle in LA. With her kid in school and hubby Jeff (Josh Radnor) always busy developing his apps, she needs therapy and something to spice things up a little – especially in her love life.

On a whim, Rachel, Jeff and another happily married couple (well played by Jessica St. Clair and Keegan Michael Key) decide to visit a downtown strip joint, where a tipsy Rachel gets a lap dance from McKenna (Juno Temple). Fascinated by the young stripper’s supposed carefree and exotic lifestyle, Rachel invites her into her life and then her home, thinking McKenna could be a project for her to ‘save her soul’. The explosive consequences open up all the cracks with Rachel’s idyllic existence that she’s been hiding away from.

Soloway’s writing pedigree (Six Feet Under and United States of Tara) stands her in excellent stead to produce a harrowingly funny and nuanced comedy drama that strikes at the heart of any bored individual dreaming of change. The plot does initially sound farfetched – stripper and housewife bond, but Soloway avoids the clichés with both Rachel and McKenna, creating fully rounded and intriguing characters who give and take from each other, and never go by the book. The humour is bittersweet at times and ironic at others as each woman tries to understand the other, emphasised by scenarios that put each one out of their comfort zone.

Hahn rides the emotional rollercoaster that is Rachel with full aplomb, cultivating with a wonderfully drunken rendition of self-loathing at the end in front of shocked and anxious girlfriends – similar to Wiig’s meltdown in Bridesmaids. This is Hahn’s time to shine in the leading girl role, and it’s a long time coming to reveal her as a tour de force in the superior ‘chick flick’ genre, but well worth the wait and the right material.

In addition, Temple does well to not stereotype McKenna, except for the slutty Barbie pink image and obvious professional mindset. However, the hilarious supporting standout performance prize goes to Glee’s Jane Lynch as lesbian therapist Lenore who has a surprise in store for Rachel (and us) at the end of the ordeal that brings tears to the eyes.

Female comedy drama is burning bright in recent years, with storylines that drive to the heart of real women’s issues. Soloway’s Afternoon Delight builds a comical (if generally unlikely) premise for all those issues to be addressed in the modern-day pressure cooker to have and do it all. Afternoon Delight is also the pitch-perfect morning, afternoon or evening viewing for any stay-at-home-mum who gets the ‘grass is always greener’ speech from her working sisters. There are only so many coffee mornings a girl can stomach…

5/5 stars

By @FilmGazer

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LFF 2013: The Past *****

by lgileskeddie

Posted: 31/03/2014

Exciting Iranian director Asghar Farhadi of Oscar-winning A Separation (2011) returns with French drama The Past (Le passé) that again touches on the remnants of divorce and its effects on the family. Far from being just an intense and deeply emotional experience – as most French relationship dramas tend to be, this one weaves in a crime mystery for added measure and intrigue, if the stroppy teen and even stroppier mother get too much to bare. Co-writer Farhadi still links the story to his homeland, with Iranian actor Ali Mosaffa in a lead role as Iranian national Ahmad.

Ahmad (Mosaffa) returns to the outskirts of Paris, France to finalise divorce proceedings with his turbulent French wife Marie (The Artist’s Bérénice Bejo) who has not made arrangements for his stay this time as there have been other no-shows. Added to which, Marie asks Ahmad to talk to her estranged teen daughter Lucie (Pauline Burlet) who she can no longer communicate with to find out why she stays away from home.

With no option but to stay in the family house, Ahmad finds he’s sharing it with Marie’s new husband-to-be, Samir (Tahar Rahim) whose wife is in hospital in a coma after a suicide attempt, and Samir’s troubled young son, Fouad (Elyes Aguis) who distrusts the visiting stranger but soon grows fond of him as he pays him attention.

While uncovering Lucie’s problem, it’s soon apparent that Samir’s wife’s suicide might be the result of her discovering the affair between Marie and Samir via email, supposedly instigated by Lucie. Ahmad feels he needs to get to the bottom of things, if only to spend one last time with his outgoing family and for the fragile peace of mind of his former wife and her children he once called his own.

Farhadi creates a claustrophobic space that bristles with life and full-frontal emotions, highly explosive at any one second. The family home is both the battleground and the retreat, with Ahmad sent like some guardian angel character to keep the peace. Mosaffa is an enigmatic and authoritative presence on screen, a mixture of kindness and aloofness in the role, but a complete opposite to Bejo’s emotional wreck Marie.

Bejo shakes with raw anger, hurt and frustration as Marie, a woman under fire from all angles and constantly putting up defences that slowly crumble as she realises how affecting Ahmad still is. Bejo is simply magnificent here, once again, in a standout performance of her own. With Samir in the equation, Farhadi creates a gladiatorial space in the kitchen to pit Samir against Ahmad in the clash of the male egos. It’s intoxicating stuff, and there is a standoff moment that is brilliantly acted when Samir believes Ahmad is undermining him in front of his son.

The suicide-mystery part takes the story along a different trajectory, but it’s key to this vulnerable family’s happiness. It’s expertly woven into the family’s healing process, so as a sub-plot, becomes integral, showing some astute writing. The end shot is a breathe-stopping moment that has the credits rolling over it, but the beady-eyed among us will notice signs beforehand that will answer many questions.

Farhadi’s all-consuming and cerebral emotional drama puzzle The Past could be another awards contender, with a scriptwriting prowess matched by an exceptional cast under talented direction.

5/5 stars

By @FilmGazer

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The Machine ***

by lgileskeddie

Posted: 31/03/2014

Writer-director Caradog W James tackles the age-old sci-fi fantasy of making artificial life with superior intellect in The Machine. The thriller raises the moral dilemma of playing god and the pitfalls of having such power to hand. In a sinister twist with recent events surrounding the missing Flight MH370, the film also brews political tension with a Cold War situation between China and the West, all within a sub-£1 million budget.

Toby Stephens plays neuroscientist Dr Vincent McCarthy who has both professional and personal reasons for success in his research into the most advanced artificial intelligence set to help mankind. Working in a covert laboratory in a special bunker for the Ministry of Defence, he hires AI expert programmer Ava (Caity Lotz) to complete the last puzzle of the jigsaw. However, tragedy sees the project take a sinister turn, with the MoD’s real aim to create the ultimate robotic solider that acts human but is indestructible in nature. Dr McCarty realises the worse but has fallen for his Machine.

The film’s harsh, stark production design adds a chilling atmosphere to an already foreboding presence that helps accentuate any warmth or feeling glimmering through, with a further harrowing subplot between father and sick child that resonates with any parent. For a low-budget film, there are a lot of themes comfortably at play here that make for a believable but disturbing premise. Lack of big budget means James delivers a lean project that has to concentrate on the characters’ psyches rather than CG to work.

Stephens is commendable in the role of Dr McCarthy, a contradiction in himself of a human only half surviving, running like a machine. His character makes a good contrast with that of Lotz’s cyborg. The US actress gives an impressive performance here, as memorable as Blade Runner’s Rachael (Sean Young) or Pris (Daryl Hannah). In fact, there has been a long-awaited need to revisit the subject of A.I., not satisfied by Warners’ smaltzy A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001) with Haley Joel Osment as the cutesy robokid. James strips emotions to the bare essentials, but makes the subject a controversial challenge by the very nature of the setting.

The film does show its budget restraints at times in some of the fight scenes, but there are raw choreographed moves involving Lotz that more than make up for this. That said the ‘birth’ scene is highly visual and there is a sense that James spent a good portion of his effects budget getting this part right. In his claustrophobic setting, life pulses to be born and survive which makes for an infectious end aim.

Overall, The Machine has a chic, sparse style to it within a highly believable, near-future dystopia that with actual advances in modern science is hard to merely write off as fictional. There is the totally obvious ending and desired sequel set-up, but here’s hoping not one that tarnishes the pure intrinsic beauty of this film’s design quality if more money were thrown at it.

3/5 stars

By @FilmGazer

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LFF 2013: Starred Up ****

by lgileskeddie

Posted: 31/03/2014

Referring to youth offenders sent to adult prisons because of their violent behaviour, Starred Up sounds like another gritty prison drama, as depressingly abundant in British cinema as the gritty gang-related flicks set on sink estates in the capital. In fact, Young Adam director David Mackenzie and debut screenwriter Jonathan Asser’s pressure cooker of incarcerated menace actually tries for a different angle: exploring the miserable fallout of domestic violence on children.

Troubled and angry teenager Eric (Jack O’Connell) is sent down into the bowels of a tough adult prison where every inmate is a potential target of developing an ingrained prison mentality. His estranged father Neville (Ben Mendelsohn) is also a long-serving inmate detained at Her Majesty’s pleasure. What seems like a reassuring prospect for the youngster at risk is far from it. It’s only with the intervention of Oliver (Rupert Friend), a volunteer therapist passionate about addressing Eric’s unruly behaviour that he stands a glimmer of a chance. However, with the penal system and its staff desperate to write Eric off and label him, he is subsequently exposed to a greater threat closer to home.

However well Asser’s background working in Wandsworth prison serves him here, making for a totally authentic environment, there is still a cynical element to the characterisation in the film that such a genre cannot shake off, peppered with the typical full-on expletives you would come to expect. In fact, the prison slang takes adjusting to in parts, acting both a plus and a minus in our understanding of prison existence. That said the level of violent intent is not in the dialogue but the body language – this is a very physical film, and the filmmakers keep matters tightly wound to breaking point.

Central to this are some outstanding performances from O’Connell and Mendelson, both hugely exciting actors in British cinema today. The father-son friction is only as successful as this pair makes it when in face-to-face confrontation and it’s utterly electrifying to witness. The frustrations both experience really resonate as much as our own frustration with the poor communication their familiar bond suffers from. It’s always touch-and-go and highly charged, even when there is a glimmer of hope that’s subsequently shattered.

Mackenzie’s commendable direction keeps things tight and super claustrophobic, resulting in the viewer often wanting out of Oliver’s brick-walled therapy room, say, but being just as much a prisoner within the four walls when male egos collide. Friend is also exceptional in this, balancing the right amount of teetering control with a suggested sinister side and background as the embattled ‘posh toff’ therapist. His frustrations are also completely comprehensible, resulting in actions anyone would forgive in the circumstances. In fact, the lack of coherent communication is what ironically drives this drama as actions need to speak louder than words but regrettably so.

It’s a very worthy start to Asser’s budding film career, thankfully cultivated by Mackenzie’s talent, resulting in an explosive and criminally tragic watch that makes you ultimately disappointed that history is allowed to constantly repeat itself.

4/5 stars

By @FilmGazer

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