Donnybrook

Frank Grillo can be quite scary - or at least play scary and evil as good as anyone else can. Jamie Bell is really good in this too (and he needs to be with Grillos character overtaking and really being a menace and presence here), though for me I always remember Billy Elliott when I see him. Not his fault and as said, he is quite good in this, it is just the perception one sometimes has.

The movie is moody and dark. Some very bad things are happening to some good or at least rather innocent beings ... And all leads to the final fight! Quite literally also ... a Drama that does not hold back a punch and might challenge some viewers.

It was indeed quiet in the Winter Garden Theatre when the credits rolled at TIFF. This is not a movie you cheer for. It's gorgeous and brutal and humble. You exhale when it's done, and you're thankful for your different less desperate way of life.

The acting is superb, especially the brave Margaret Qualley. This deserves to be seen

Greetings again from the darkness. Is it a coincidence that I'm reviewing this moving on Charles Darwin's birthday? "Survival of the fittest" could be the subtitle to writer-director Tim Sutton's bleak film adapted from the novel by Frank Bill. The film would have us believe that, once born into poverty and a hopeless existence, the only daily decisions to be made are: Do I try to survive another day? Should I kill myself? Should I kill someone else?

Is that bleak enough for you? Sutton's film provides glimpses of each of the three questions, but mostly it's an expose' on the violence that is generated from a community of poverty, addiction, abuse, and crime. It isn't clear and doesn't matter which of those things comes first ... they all lead down the same path. Jamie Bell plays "Jarhead" Earl, a military veteran looking for an escape route for his young kids and his junkie wife (Dara Tiller). Having a knack for fighting, and an apparent ability to take a beating, Earl decides the only way out is by winning the $100,000 grand prize for the Donnybrook ... a no-rules bareknuckle cage fight. Of course his only route to the entry fee is via armed robbery. Have I mentioned this is bleak?

Earl doesn't talk much, but he tries to protect his wife from the local meth dealer, a brutal savage named Angus (Frank Grillo, THE GREY) who has an awkward partnership with his younger sister Delia (Margaret Qualley, NOTIVTIATE) as they make the rounds taking care of business. Angus is the type that resorts to violence in every situation, and we witness his lack of value on human life is just about every scene he is in. Delia is a bit more complicated, as she longs for a way out, and accepts even a momentary reprieve. To top it off, we have a Detective Whalen (James Badge Dale, "The Pacific") who is "chasing" this brother-sister outlaw duo ... well at least he chases them between drug and booze fueled sidetracks.

The story takes place in the rural Midwest with towns and people those on both coasts never give much thought. When Earl finally reaches the Donnybrook, we are treated to what appears to be a redneck Burning Man festival where the revelers only stop hooting and beer guzzling long enough to sing the National Anthem while the American flag waves. We are left not knowing if this is a commentary on poverty, male aggression, or the forgotten class. It has some tonal similarities to the excellent OUT OF THE FURNACE, but isn't close to that level. None of filmmaker Sutton's first 3 movies have found much of an audience outside of festivals, and it's a safe bet this one won't either.

This movie is grim, dark, and depressing. That's OK, there is definitely a place for this sort of film. I was unfamiliar with the entire cast, but the acting was quite good, especially Margaret Qualley. Good photography and direction as well. Much of the violence, in the methhead tweaker community seemed quite pointless, which I suppose was the point. Hard to say whether I could recommend this film to anyone.

This film was extremely graphic. It had a little bit of everything wrong with The United States. It had incest, child murder, nazi's, drugs, poverty, violence, robbery and crooked cops. They way it was put together was beautiful and brutal at the same time. I'm glad I finally decided to give this film a shot. Hats off to the writer/director. Definitely a film worth checking out. I highly recommend giving it a watch. 6 stars.