This Irish film was featured in last February's Jameson Dublin International Film Festival, however I never had the opportunity to see it until today.
The subject matter is not really my cup of tea but I was curious as this film received many accolades here in Ireland...
A simple story -- a passive young man is accosted by two teenage punks late one night in a Dublin backstreet. They assault him and steal his belongings. But we (artfully handled) find out later that they take more than just his belongings, they cut off his manhood as well...
He transforms through many stages (fear, control, anger, revenge) from a feeble man to a man of violence, culminating in a final scene of climactic expiation.
With an obvious ode to Taxi Driver, this film is deftly handled by director Brendan Muldowney in its pacing and ultimate controlling of how we follow this young man's lonely journey towards his own personal resurrection.
A statement on violence and whether more violence is really the answer...
An interesting piece of trivia -- the lead actor in this film pleaded guilty to assaulting a young man in a Dublin pub in 2005. This man later died from a blood clot in his brain. The lead actor ultimately received a two-year suspended sentence and never had to serve any time. The Dublin court determined that there was no intent to cause serious harm...
Art imitating life?
