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Reviews
The Front Line (2006)
A Ground breaking film
The Front Line marks a major watershed in Irish cinema. Addressing issues of immigration and the horrors of genocide in Africa in a contemporary thriller which plays out on the streets of Dublin, David Gleeson has raised the bar considerably for an Irish film.
The director's previous film, Cowboys and Angels, which he also wrote, stands as one of the best Irish films of the last decade. Deceptively simple and light in tone Gleeson addressed similar issues of alienation and broke new ground even then by moving away from the ponderous and the frankly dour image which Irish films hitherto presented of Ireland.
Although a very different film and working with a much larger budget, The Front Line is a more rewarding cinematic experience. Graced with a hypnotic central performance from Eriq Ebouaney the film grips from the opening set up in the Garda Immigration bureau.
Supporting cast are exceptional with outstanding turns from Fatou N'Diaye as Kala and Hakeem Kae Kazim as the sinister and hugely charismatic Erasmus. James Frain turns in a chilling performance as the scariest bad guy ever to roam the streets of Dublin. Patrick Cassidy's music also deserves particular praise.
I can't think of any other film with which to compare this. Perhaps Dirty Pretty Things comes closest but for emotional impact this is a far richer experience.
Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
I wanted to like this....
Drowning in the sea of You, Me & Dupree, Little Man and Beerfest currently clogging up our multiplexes I really wanted to like this film, promising as it did a return to a more cerebral sensibility which is sadly missing from US film. I couldn't warm to it though.
I found all of the characters selfish, gormless and unlikeable. The film work its quirkiness right next to its heart, on its sleeve. The whole mean spirited tone of the film left a foul taste in my mouth.
What was the deal with Grandad? The feisty old guy who won't be kept down was in fact a mean and twisted dirty old man. I didn't get it.
A tale of a family of losers on the road together is the main appeal here but I couldn't see much redemption for them at the end of it. Perhaps this wasn't the point but I certainly didn't enjoy the time I spent in their company.
Dead Bodies (2003)
Good director, poor script
Robert Quinn shows he's got the goods but needs to exercise better judgment when deciding what scripts to go with - You don't get too many shots. Well directed but where does one draw the line? - director has to take some credit for story choices and character motivation which in this instance was non existent.
Pauper's "Shallow Grave" this. Derek Landy had the very good fortune to see what passes in most instances for a first draft make it to the screen. One can only pray "Boy Eats Girl" is better for everyone's sake. Logic is non existent and characters are all unsympathetic and unlikeable, as evidenced by audiences in all media staying away in droves and film going down like a lead balloon internationally.
Saltwater (2000)
Above average
Not a lot happens. Plot is thin but McPherson spreads it out nicely.
A nicely controlled and very competent debut feature. Manages to get beneath the skin of the script and make us feel for the piece. At times film transcends script and becomes something else entirely. Unfortunately it's all somewhat marred by McPherson taking it as read that viewer will understand more than he's telling us - eg What exactly was relationships between all male characters. Understand 2 were brothers but who exactly was blondie puke boy? Nice cast. Not sure what they were all doing in such a small movie which didn't quite transcend it's smallness.
Ending felt somewhat tacked on.
Cowboys & Angels (2003)
Colorful, bold and exhilaratingly alive
Flat-mate wanted: apply within. So begins the sweetest straight-gay friendship in recent memory. Shane is a lost and lonely 20 year-old civil servant from the suburbs; he's adorably hetero and has no sense of style. His new roommate in the big city is Vincent, a hot young fashion student, queer, innately stylish, full of life, surrounded by friends, and able to pick up a hot daddy in ten seconds. For Shane, Vincent unlocks buried artistic dreams and a burning need to embrace the adventure of youth. For Vincent, Shane is...well...he's a makeover project, inside and out. And soon enough, he's in serious trouble. Filled with just enough confidence to make just the wrong move, Shane falls in with two drug-dealing thugs downstairs, and things get dangerous fast. As he spins out of control, Vincent flinches from the monster he's created. But the flat has thin walls, and even at their worst, Shane and Vincent never stop listening for each other. Refreshingly, writer/director David Gleeson's vision of this friendship transcends all that we've come to expect from a gay-straight relationship onscreen. The warmth and youthful optimism that emerge from this duo is positively infectious, and Michael Legge and Allen Leech effortlessly bring to life one of the rarest kinds of love. Gleeson's production is polished and lyrical; like Shane's clothing designs, Cowboys and Angels is colorful, bold and exhilaratingly alive.