Entertainment Ireland

Harry Brown

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If the old man from Up lived on a council estate and was a trained killer, he might look something like Harry Brown.

A revenge tale with a social conscience, Harry Brown is a grubby, violent but often ponderous film, boasting one of the best performances of the year from Michael Caine. Taking its time to build to the inevitable bloodshed was a wise move, as we genuinely feel for Harry when he loses everything that was dear to him and simply snaps.

Living on a rundown estate full of aggressive hoodrats, Harry has spent the majority of his life avoiding trouble and trouble makers. When his wife dies, he has only his best friend Len for company; but when he is brutally murdered by a gang who have been continually hassling him, and the police then put the investigation on the backburner, Harry decides to take justice into his own hands. An Ex-Royal Marine, he knows how to handle a firearm, and has been around death more than he’d like to remember. Unlocking the dark side of himself for the first time in years, he begins to hunt down those responsible.

Director Daniel Barber deserves credit for keeping the film grounded very much in reality, never descending to the hyperbolic fighting of something like Taken. Caine is in his 70’s now, so it probably wouldn’t have been a wise move for him to attempt some hand-to-hand combat. What he does is portray the obvious vulnerability of your average pensioner and the efficiency of a man who has killed before wonderfully. You are on this man's side from the start, despite the extreme measures he goes to, and Caine deserves an Oscar nomination for his brilliant performance. Emily Mortimer offers excellent support in a role that still could’ve done with a bit more padding, while Ben Drew deserves a mention for his turn as the scumbag at the centre of it all.

Harry Brown holds a mirror up to a certain element of society, even if it does put a fictional slant on the escalation of violence. Barber is now firmly a director to watch, and Michael Caine is outstanding.

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