The Tiger's Tail

Weaving in philosophical quandaries of doppelganger definitions of self with taut suspense and scathing social commentary, writer/director John Boorman's latest film dripped with promise. And while this may have been a promise superseded by the film's overambitious reach, The Tiger's Tail proves an entertaining amalgamation, despite the frequent creative misfires.

Boasting an intriguing premise, the film is at its strongest when dealing with the central plot thread of a wealthy Irish businessman (Gleeson) having his comfortable life usurped by his violently unpredictable twin (also Gleeson), falling into destitution in the process. This effective, almost Hitchcockian thriller toying with notions of doppelgangers, sense of self and definition of identity makes for a sturdy start, which sadly ends all too soon, falling short of the taut suspense piece it could have been. After this central storyline has run its course, the film begins to waver, jerking around with contrived plot twists and becoming somewhat of a confused muddle before culminating in a genuinely unorthodox if unsatisfying ending. Imbalance is the word of choice as the film's tone and plot flip-flop throughout, stuffing in as much social critique into the narrative as possible and slathering everything on rather thickly, from the central theme of the rich/poor divide (though whether Ireland's is truly the most dramatically so in all of Europe, as the film states is questionable) to the soaring crescendo of dramatic music, while underplaying the development of other intriguing plot threads (O'Leary seems oddly unsurprised by the unnerving discovery of his secret sordid past) to underwhelming effect.

However, director Boorman excels in his less than flattering, darkly satirical depiction of contemporary Dublin: indeed "a land Joyce would hardly recognize" and a far cry from the country's usual romanticized cinematic portrayals. Boorman's Dublin is a rank, filthy place more akin to the worst days of New York, filled with poverty, destitution, endless traffic, street-fights and vomiting teens - a city who would whimsically release their entire supply of non-violent mental patients onto the street to cut costs, in one of the film's most staggering lapses in judgement. An ode to the city's culture this isn't, but an intriguing cinematic cry for change it is. But in the end, despite the noticeably flawed delivery, the film proves a consistently entertaining watch, never slowing down enough to become anything less than enjoyable, if slightly frantically so.

Brendan Gleeson shines in a much needed starring role, wonderfully essaying both the grimly successful businessman and his shady identical twin with convincing distinctions and charisma to spare. However, the horrifyingly miscast Kim Cattrall easily proves the film's weakest point, her performance as consistently unconvincing as her shriekingly insulting attempt at an Irish accent. From her wobbling between unsatisfied wife to vacant shopaholic, to her never once reacting to the events surrounding her in a convincing fashion, coming as low as succumbing to attempted rape with sordid glee, Cattrall's performance and character scream of every shade of wrong. Briain Gleeson, real life son of star Brendan is an endearing and amusing presence as the protagonist's communist enthusiast son, even if he lacks the necessary exposition to jump from being wryly cynical to melodramatically disenchanted with life. Ciarán Hinds is a charming addition as a well meaning priest, and Sinéad Cusack does her best to keep herself from veering over the top in a laughably poorly written role as the mysterious family member connected to both O'Leary and his dark counterpart.

However imbalanced and overambitious the film may be, overlooking character and narrative development for over-obvious social critique, The Tiger's Tail remains a uniquely entertaining anomaly in spite of itself, anchored by a well deserved star turn by Gleeson. While hardly one of the strongest pieces of Irish cinema to emerge of late, the film remains an enjoyable and intriguing watch for those willing to side-step its frequently flawed delivery.

-6/10

I go to Theatre and Cinema to be entertained. This film did it for me. A good story, good acting, well shot scenery... what more do I require? There is no hard and fast way of speaking, if you live in Dublin. Therefore , we must remember there are no rules... So we cannot break them. Bad accents and diction can be heard every day from people who use their voice. Take our Radio and Television front men and women, who frequently refer to 'Fillums - Tremenjus- and excepted, instead of accepted.... Do we hang them out to dry? So what if an American Actor didn't quite get it right. Did she not convince us that she was a wronged wife in a bad marriage? Did Gleason not come across as a man with many problems, who was in fear of ruining himself? Did John Kavanagh,Sinead Cusack, Sean McGinley and many other good actors not grasp the role and present it as such.? I liked it... well done John, Cast and all concerned.

This film begins with a wealthy architect named "Liam O'Leary" (Brendan Gleeson) having some financial difficulties concerning a speculative purchase on some land he has recently financed. In addition to that, he is also having some martial problems with his wife "Jane O'Leary" (Kim Cattrall). So, things aren't going as smoothly as he would like. It's during this time of stress that he begins to have what his friends consider to be hallucinations when he tells them that a man who looks exactly like him keeps appearing at irregular moments. To make matters even worse, he becomes convinced that this man intends on harming him for unknown reasons as well. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that, although this film is billed as a comedy, I really didn't see much humor in it as it was more of a mystery-drama than anything else. In essence, this was a rather peculiar film which had some dull scenes here and there yet still managed to keep my attention for the most part, and for that reason, I have rated it accordingly. Average.

This new film is very peculiar. PURPORTING to be about the Celtic Tiger and modern Ireland, it is curiously insipid. Despite setting out to be satirical, it falls flat. Hard to pin down exactly why, but probably due to laziness on the the filmmakers behalf. Why isn't he making satirical films about London? Brendan Gleeson is okay, but the two characters he plays stretch the imagination. Catrall isn't really credible as an Irish woman and some of her lines are hard to listen to. The camera-work is surprisingly dull, as some of his previous films have looked great, and doesn't make anyone look good. That said you should check it out, if only cos he is the same filmmaker who made Point Blank and Deliverance, and its a paradox to see how far off these classics he has drifted.

I recently saw this at the 2007 Palm Springs International Film Festival for it's North American premiere. Director/writer John Boorman has had a very sporadic directorial career making only 15 feature length films between 1965 and 2006 including this, his latest offering. Boorman has rarely enjoyed the success that struck early in his career with such films as Point Blank, Hell in the Pacific and his biggest to date Deliverance. This time around Boorman has delivered a black comedy set in Ireland where Liam O'Leary (Brendan Gleesan) plays a wealthy real estate developer who's new found wealth has come through hard work and determination but is also costing him a loveless marriage to his wife Jane (Kim Catrell), an indifferent rebellious son Connor (real-life son Brian Gleeson), and he is overextended with his bank and battling with a rival developer and flirting with a nervous breakdown. Liam begins to think he is going mad when he starts seeing his double. Gleeson is very good in the double role of Liam and his double. Catrall drifts in and out of an Irish accent but it's not that pronounced of an accent to begin with to be bothersome to the viewer or detracting from the story. Brian Gleeson turns in a fine first screen debut. This is not a great film and not without it's flaws but it's got some great peripheral support players in the cast and good story with some witty moments. I liked it. It's got kind of a 1940's Hollywood B movie quality to it although set in modern times. I would give it a 7.5 out of 10 and it's worth a look.