cageybird

I like the actor, Neil Maskell, and the writer / director, Paul Andrew Williams, but all I knew about this film before hand was that it was 'very violent' and a revenge thriller.

I expected a solid British gangster type flick, but that really doesn't do it justice.

Bull is not a nice or a sympathetic character, but he's not meant to be.. and yet... Everything is tight.. the acting, the script, the direction. There are some truly shocking moments. Relating to the prominence of the funfair in the film, watching this is a lot like a roller coaster ride.. the build up of tension, the inescapable results.. but it keeps you along for the ride the whole time.

I won't even remotely spoiler this, because the less you know, the better the impact of the film.. I was floored by the ending and extremely satisfied - it made perfect sense.

Fans of gritty British flicks like Dead Mans Shoes, Kill List or even Paul Andrew Williams' London to Brighton will love this, I'm sure. 10/10 from me.

Words can barely convey the depth of feeling in this documentary. The fact that it was difficult to find on IMDb is a travesty. Three of the bravest men I have ever seen on film, and the director allows them to speak, and react, direct to the camera. Brutal, honest, the most searing account of childhood sexual abuse that I have ever seen. Should be compulsory viewing for anyone in the Social Work field. I can only thank the film-makers for presenting the stories as they are, for not flinching, for forcing us to watch and participate in every word. A stellar piece of unobtrusive film-making - allowing the antagonists to make the film.. These men are my heroes.

I first watched this when it came out in 1997. It was pretty powerful to me, and I just couldn't watch it again for a long time. I was young and dumb then, but all I could remember was my boyfriend at the time fell asleep and I bawled my eyes out.

So this week I finally geared up to watch it again...

And it smashed my heart into pieces again, with no less impact... This film is so hard to write about. Tin-Pot dictators who are kings of their own castles, and the women who support them.... What broke my heart was our 'heroine' played by Kathy Burke, the victim of her nasty, violent husband... He beats the sh*t out of her, she throws him out, he begs to come back, and you are just f**king cheering her on.... The next scene, he's back, all's good, no big reconciliation scene... This could have been the movie of my childhood... Drama, police, strength, followed by some mystery process and everything back to 'normal'. I felt like Oldman was watching my childhood then put it on screen.... This film has stayed with me for 20 years and I have never seen a truer portrayal of casual domestic violence. Kathy Burke was f**king out of this world as a strong, yet ultimately trapped woman, and Ray Winstone was a tour-de-force, literally, as a man who doesn't understand his own motives, who never will..... For me this is THE definitive British domestic violence film