Bring Them Down

It's a conflict drama between neighboring Irish sheep farmers based on faulty talking, faulty listening, and quick tempers. Michael O'Shea (Christopher Abbott) lives with his bitter, disabled father, Ray (Colm Meaney). Before the titles, we learn that 20 years before, Michael recklessly drove a car into an accident that killed his mother, who had just told Michael she was leaving his father, and seriously injured his girlfriend, Caroline (Nora-Jane Noone). Caroline eventually married the next-door farmer, Gary (Paul Ready), and they had a son, now an older teenager, Jack (Barry Keoghan).

Events unfold in escalating hostility between the neighbors, though Caroline tries to maintain the peace. The film's first half tells the story from Michael's perspective; the second half is more from Jack's perspective. When seen together, we learn that accusations based on faulty assumptions and distorted memories lead to increasing violence. The film ends when things have gone too far.

"Bring Them Down" has a double meaning--bringing the sheep down from the hills in winter and bringing down the evil neighbor. The non-linear nature of the story demands focused attention throughout but is rewarding. Abbott, Keoghan, and Noone are excellent. Meaney is memorable but a bit clichéd.

'Bring Them Down (2024)' is a bleak tale of rivalry, isolation, bitterness, generational trauma and an escalating cycle of vengeance. Focused on a pair of father-son farming families who find themselves in conflict without ever really knowing who struck the first blow or why (or, even, what counts as the first blow), the feature is essentially one long spiral into tragedy. Each time our lonely protagonist is wronged, we want to see him get retribution, all while knowing that doing so won't end well for anybody. Just when we feel we have a handle on things, the narrative winds back the clock to provide an alternate perspective and essentially reveal the reasons behind its chaotic chain of events. The information the back half presents isn't entirely revelatory, nor does it excuse the behaviour exhibited by its previously more mysterious characters, but it does double down on the sadness at the story's core by showcasing how much of what happens is a product of misguided youth rather than malicious intent. A mistake spirals into more mistakes, an insecurity leads to unspeakable cruelty, a brutal request is fulfilled before it's ever solidified as being expected. Things near the verge of potentially peacefully resolving only when it's already too late to stop them. The wound has been struck, the other eye is sought. The only question is: will mercy finally win? No matter the case, nobody comes out of this unscathed. Everything is irrevocably changed forever, and this downfall comes seemingly out of nowhere. Pettiness costs lives. Revenge satisfies no-one. One's own actions bring them down, and there's no getting back up.

The film is incredibly engaging, with an inky atmosphere and an underlying brutality that contrasts with its gorgeous countryside setting. The performances are pitch-perfect, an amalgamation of anger and toxicity and sadness and loneliness and misguided attempts at making things better. The father lets down the son, just as the son lets down the father. Although Barry Keoghan is great, he's definitely too old for this role; his character is seemingly meant to be a teenager, or in his early twenties at the latest, and so much of what he does is informed by his youthful naiveté. He's much easier to understand if you keep in mind that he's immature, essentially still a child who craves nothing more than a happy family who love him despite his flaws. However, Christopher Abbot is bang on the money, carrying a tangible weight in his every scene and mixing gentleness with a capacity for violence incredibly convincingly. He also does a great job with his accent and Gaelic-language lines, feeling right at home alongside his Irish co-stars (including a grumpy, chair-bound Colm Meaney as his not-very-nice father). The direction is really confident, making excellent use of silence and letting the performers do their magic even when there's no dialogue. The cinematography is really effective at conveying both the beauty and harshness of the environment, and the nighttime sequences toe the line between genuine darkness and necessary clarity remarkably well. The whole affair just has this really realistic texture to it, keeping things grounded even when it's plot is at its most contrived (which isn't very, by the way). It's a compelling, immersive experience and it's made even more impressive by the fact that it's a directorial debut. Comparisons to 'The Banshees Of Inisherin (2022)' are inevitable, but this is by no means a rip-off of that much more (darkly) comedic effort. It's its own beast, and it deserves to be considered as such. It's a tense, downbeat experience that often puts a knot in your stomach and keeps it there, all while conveying a sense of sadness that makes you want to put your arms around almost everyone you see and give them a hug that says "everything's going to be alright". It's a tough watch at times (especially if you're an animal lover), but it isn't dour for the sake of it. It's an entertainingly upsetting drama that keeps you hooked from start to finish.

This movie has a really simple storyline when you look at it overall. But the director's craft and filming style make it much more engaging, and on top of that, it brings a fresh cinematic experience that we don't often see. One of the things I really liked about this film was the music score. They used a sound that resembles a pulsating beat but blended it with a traditional instrumental feel, which added an intense and unique atmosphere to the film. Since the movie is a thriller set in a rural area, the cinematography is stunning. However, there are quite a few handheld camera shots, which make certain scenes feel more immersive. While that works well for some moments, like close up tension-building shots, it does make action sequences like running or car chases harder to follow at times. When it comes to acting, the performances were solid, and Barry's performance stood out as the best in the film. The movie also does a great job of portraying deep emotional struggles-how parental conflicts affect children, the trauma of losing something precious, and how unresolved emotions can push someone into a state of complete mental breakdown. It also highlights the unintended consequences of human ego in a way that feels incredibly raw and real. These are the elements that make this film truly unforgettable.

Bring Them Down: A savage tale of feuding hill farmers, sheep stoen, sheep mutilated, just their legs cut off to be sold. All tied in with a car crash which took place twenty years before but the consequences of which still impinge on pent day events. This was advertised as being partially a comedy but the few comedic moments are bleak and the laughter will likely choke in yiur throat. Not just animals but humans also suffer terrible deaths and injuries. In the second half of the film some of the events we have already observed are revisited and we achieve a clearer understanding of what is really going on. Non-linear narratives often enhance a film but I don't believe it does so in this instance. Good performances from Barry Keoghan, Colm Meaney, Christopher Abbot, Paul Ready and Nora-Jane Noone even if Keoghan is getting a bit long on the tooth to be playing a teenager. Maybe an Irish Hatfields & McCoys or a Beckettian Bog Western. Written and Directed by Christopher Andrews. 7/10.

69TH CORK FILM FEST - #3 (PREMIERE + Q&A)

A fast-paced revenge film that never has a dull moment that somehow manages to pull of the impossible, in my opinion. The entire cast do a fantastic job, but the standout would have to be Nora-Jane Murphy, Barry Keoghan and Christopher Abbot (who's accent is unreal for an American). Both do so much more with their respective roles than anyone else. The themes of abuse, violence and the inability to properly communicate are very welded in here. They are also very current in our world at the moment, so they really spoke to me. I'm very excited to revisit this one on general release.