Black Pool is a pretty gripping drama-suspense-thriller. Most of the movie is set in one room - a dark, dank basement in an industrial area of some unnamed American city. (based on the end credits, I think it's Portland, Oregon). The movie centers on three characters who spend the entire running time trying to outwit each other as they work to figure out who is telling the truth and who is lying about a tragic event in their shared pasts. There are some nice twists and turns in the plot. There are some interesting quasi-experimental touches throughout, in particular the use of shots of contemporary Belfast and Dublin and the use of old newsreel footage of the war that has long raged in parts of Northern Ireland. The movie is in fact VERY Irish - it is scored almost entirely by Irish punk rock music and features footage and photography and plot elements from the conflict in Northern Ireland commonly known as the Troubles. Without being too obvious, the movie does a good job of providing background about that conflict, so you don't have to be an expert on it to follow the action, but I suspect that if you know something about Ireland's violent political history then you might get more out of the themes of the movie than I did. But as I said, you won't have any trouble following it. Whether you are interested in Ireland or not, it's a very gut-wrenching thriller. Also, the actors are incredible, it is a real showcase for them. It's obviously pretty low budget so I don't know what kind of a release it will get, but it's an excellent film and worth seeking out. Very highly recommended.
