The Front Line

The world is changing. Ireland used to be a place where people starved and dispersed around the globe in hope of a better life. Today people from troubled faraway lands come to Ireland to seek sanctuary. But sometimes there is no sanctuary to be found, the perils are following wherever we go. This powerful movie was advertised as a thriller, but the thrills that this story provides in abundance are of a different kind.The suffering of genocide victims in Congo or any other place on earth is unimaginable. Hollywood with its contrivances can not possibly match the shocking occurrences that life can impose on some poor souls. The Irish filmmakers took a different path, of compassion and sorrow and it filled our hearts with sincere emotions. Most of all thanks to a amazing performance of little known Eriq Ebouaney. His quiet, dignified presence spoke more than a million words.

The DVD, in photos online, tell you nothing. (I watched it late night, BBC2). Firstly, it's written/directed by Limerick born David Gleeson (this is his 2nd feature), is set in Dublin, 93mins long and stars Eriq Ebouaney and James Frain.

Ebouaney plays a Congolese immigrant, who has escaped a violent past in his homeland. He's brought his wife over and they have a young girl. He's found work as a security guard at a bank but past events come back to haunt him, when Irish thug Frain and his gang kidnap his family - all he has to do is be the insider for them robbing his bank.

It's a polished and modern production, with lots of moody lighting, booming bass thuds and prowling camera, so, so far, so good. As a heist movie, it's OK but that tired formula needs a bit more to get a movie standing out above the rest. Ebouaney helps this, he is both convincing as the new citizen trying to lead a good life and as a human being out of his depth. Frain has less screen presence but is suitably psychotic where he should be.

The whole thing moves along pretty quickly - in just over half an hour, they're already inside the bank vaults. It's also great to see a different city and its streets to the usual as a setting.

Such crime thrillers aren't my staple film diet so The Front Line will never make any of my top anything lists. However, if such are, you could do a lot worse than this one for a mid-week rental or if you can find it on Sky somewhere. At the price here, it's just not worth it, though.

I saw this movie as one that tried both to entertain and to be political. This mix could be dangerous in the sense that both of these goals very well could be ruined. But I think that the movie succeeded on both accounts.

Joe Yumba is a black man who arrives to Ireland from Congo and is granted permission to stay and find work to his joy and relief. He seems honest but at the same time you get the feeling that he is hiding something. He is very soon put to the test as the local mafia wants to exploit him to rob the bank where he has found work as a security guy. Through the story that follows you slowly get to know what he has been through in Congo.

In some respects it resembles many action movies but the characters in this one are more vibrant and believable than what you are used to in the Hollywood productions and this is really what makes this movie stand out.

I give this one 7/10.

Regards Simon

Ps. When you read reviews that gives max score check to see if the user has made more than one review. If not consider the possibility of a lobbyist. If you agree consider putting this post scriptum at the bottom at your own reviews.

This isn't a bad attempt at an Irish crime movie. While James Frain hams it up as a baddie, Eric Ebouaney is very watchable as an asylum seeker looking to settle in the city. He is man with a secret just trying to get by and escape his past in the Congo. His wife and son arrive to be with him, but all is not what it seems. Taking a job as a security guard at a bank, he is soon in the thick of it, the victim of a from the headlines tiger kidnapping. When things go awry as they invariably do in this genre piece, there is hell to pay. Getting into bed with a gang of African racketeers – a first in an Irish film – the film subtly examines the plight of a refugee in an alien country, albeit against a heightened backdrop. The performances from Ebouaney and Hakeem Kae Kazim are good, though the Irish characters, particularly the police, are a little stiff. Camera-work is good and the soundtrack contemporary. The twist at the end is okay. Certainly an improvement on the director's first outing Cowboys and Angels. Warning: Brendan Gleeson is not in this 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.