Sensation

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Gleeson is Donal, a young twentysomething in rural Ireland who we're introduced to just as he finds his father dead. Ironically, that discovery generates a new lease of life for him, and he begins to give in to the sexual urges that he couldn't indulge in while his old man is alive by ordering a prostitute. When said call girl Kim (kiwi actress Gordon) turns up, the two find that they have more in common through poor circumstances than actual chemistry, so decide to start a not-entirely-legal business together.

Firmly in offbeat mode from the start, Sensation won't appeal to everyone – especially those with a delicate sensibility – but it is a rare Irish film with characters that aren't amplified stereotypes or lame American knock-offs. Donal is someone who many people at home will recognise from their youth; a guy who just never really had a chance to grow past his teens properly. You'll feel for him, and it's this empathy that Gleeson manages to incite with ease. He's proven himself a more than capable actor in smaller roles in the past, but should find more leading roles on the back of his excellent work here.

Yet character-driven flicks that showcase idiosyncratic protagonists trying to wrap things up snugly very rarely work. Sensation feels built around Donal; not the other way around. He grows as the film moves on, but there's a certain narrative cul-de-sac that Hall backs into, and it takes the wind from its sails a little in the final third. Nonetheless, his good work up to that point is enough for it to get a pass.

Gleeson is exceptional and the humour is spot-on, but don't go in expecting a broad laugh-fest; this is eccentric stuff.