Michael Inside

Michael Inside has been described as a prison film, a category with a welter of genre expectations in which director Frank Berry hasn't the slightest interest. His purpose rather is to expose audiences to the consequences of unexamined notions about crime and punishment. The film makes it obvious that cinematic depictions of crime rarely rise above titillation. Even great Gangster films - from Godfather to Casino - find a Wagnerian grandeur in their doomed heroes. There's no grandeur in Michael's story. Before he's locked up, he's imprisoned by family history, class and community. It's a polemic of the best kind, one that makes its case by plunging us into its protagonist's claustrophobic experience so completely that any didactic editorializing becomes redundant. The nearest comparison is the Italian film Gomorrah, another modern Neorealist drama with an objective camera, impressionistic editing, minimalist score, and laconic script. The British criminologist Tom Gash recently questioned the logic of locking up young men at precisely the age when they're most likely to stop engaging in criminality. It's a compelling argument but it's not enough to make it with statistics and reason. It will take angry films like Michael Inside to make people demand reform. These days the most trivial films are routinely described as important. This one is.

Well well well. Ireland are producing some quality films recently aren't they. This film starts off slowly but once you understand what's actually going on you are quickly drawn into this film. It's sad really but this must happen to a lot of people that go into prison for the littlest of things. Definitely worth a watch

Good film, very well acted and shot. Completely captures what it is like to live on a council estate. You empathise with the characters, you get upset when they're upset, you are angry when they are angry; sure this is played up, but it is mostly reality. People like this do plod along, make mistakes and get themselves locked up. We understand this, we know of this. It isn't perfect; the ending montage is emotionally charged, although it does edge on the cheesy side, but it is a great effort.

The premise of the film is minimal but the acting and the way the film looks is raw and realistic. I enjoyed it but it did test my patience a little at times, but that is more to do with my tastes than it is to do with the film. A good Irish film. A break from the blockbusters, which I don't often take the time to watch.

My wife and I enjoyed this gritty Irish drama. Acting by the lead character was top notch along with the movie itself. In my opinion all the positive reviews regarding this film are correct.