Jack O’Connell is an actor to watch out for.
Director: Yann Demange
Cast: Jack O’Connell, Sean Harris, Charlie Murphy.
Rating: 15
Running time: 99 mins
Release date: Blu-ray, DVD & VOD on 9th March 2015
’71 tells the story of a young British trooper, who after a tumultuous start to a first mission, ends up on the wrong side of enemy lines. Beaten by a couple of IRA lackeys, with his squad member shot dead in front of him, Gary Hook (played by man-of-the-moment, Jack O ‘Connell) escapes, only to find himself in a chaotic, hostile area of Belfast. Gary has no choice but to rely on his wits to stay alive.
The film starts at a brisk pace, introducing the audience to Gary, his relationship with a fostered brother, and a typical pre-mission boot camp montage, all in the first 25 minutes. There is a kitchen-sink realist aesthetic permeating these opening scenes, accentuated by the sparse dialogue, natural lighting, and anarchic camera work. The film score works too. It’s unobtrusive yet drips with atmosphere. Director, Jann Demange, then, marks the film his own early on. The opening scenes in Belfast are expertly filmed. The dense, urban bleakness of Northern Ireland is perfectly captured, and Gary’s escape by foot is a tensely shot sequence, buttressed by the shaky, documentary style. It’s a mechanic that complements the contingency and horror of these early events.
After a promising start, ’71 begins to suffer a mid-film pacing crisis. First time feature writer, Gregory Burke, makes the mistake of slowing the film’s plot development, in turn the sense of panic and urgency presented in the raid-gone-wrong scenes falls away. Worst of all, the talented Jack O’Connell is reduced to a silent, lonely protagonist, sacrificed to the film’s adherence to the clichés of the behind-enemy-lines sub-genre. O’Connell, no doubt, is an actor to watch, yet his strongest roles have been of the aggressively thuggish variety, so a question mark remains regarding his versatility.
’71 begins to seep realism, with increasingly unlikely events escalating as Gary falls into one predicament after another. One moment he’s leaving a pub just as it blows up, injured, the next he’s conveniently shacked up with a non-hostile ex-paramedic. To its credit, the acting is strong throughout, but events feel contrived, and what was initially a free flowing story, becomes cumbersome and overly plotted. The film’s atmosphere dissipates during night scenes that promise much, and the relentless proximity of the camera work adds to an underwhelming vibe. Sadly, Belfast melts into the background: the film’s universe is reduced to the scope of the TV offerings making up the writer’s and director’s experience.
After a number of ambiguous run-ins between the IRA and the British Military Reaction Force, attempts are made to tie in the political complexity of conflict, while parting shots are hurriedly fired at the nature of military hierarchy and war. Unfortunately, these musings are left too late in the film to give them a proper airing, feeling rushed and tonally alien. With a tighter script and the reduction of dead time, ’71 could have been a taunt meditation on asymmetrical warfare. Fleshed out further, Gary’s origins and fate would have balanced the film nicely. Unfortunately this lack of attention to detail curtails the film’s resonance and depth.
Verdict:
DVD and Blu-ray Extras:
Interviews with:
– Yann Demange
– Jack O’Connell
– Gregory Burke
