'71

Heroic long-suffering young British soldier gets trapped between warring Monarchist/Republican factions in Belfast. Clever Brits get him out. Film begins with supposedly heartwarming scenes showing lonely young soldier on his home turf in Derbyshire looking after his young son. Mother absent, son living in some sort of very dodgy-looking hostel. Tugging at heart-strings preparatory stuff. A sub-plot that isn't taken anywhere. Later in Belfast, young soldier comes across another extremely nasty young boy the same age who has been brutalised by living in an extreme Unionist community where his father is a big shot. This young boy eventually has his arms blown off. We are shown this in loving, lingering detail. I personally don't have much of an appetite for looking closely at bodies of young boys with their arms blown off. In one of many unfinished sub-plots, we hear a woman saying "he's stlll breathing" but we never find out what happened to him. British Army training and grit win the day. Irish protestants and catholics provide background. Belfast couldn't be portrayed as more squalid. Token black man introduced. Token woman also introduced, but incipient romance doesn't blossom. Another sub-plot that doesn't go anywhere. Laughable depiction of IRA commanders and even more laughable depiction of British special ops officers. Endless scenes of nothing happening, made dramatic by overdubbed thumping noises, shaky hand-held camera, blurring, etc. Really boring. You can tell from a thousand miles away that this is just another movie that sets out shock you, and for that reason it doesn't shock you and is just boring. Don't even get me started on the politics. The representation of the Republican and Monarchist (or if you prefer, Catholic and Protestant) sides of the struggle is sketchy and meaningless (you need to listen to me here; I'm from Belfast). Its only purpose is to show you how great the British Army was, how their tough training got them through, how much they had to put up with trying to keep order among these more or less subhuman Irish in their unbelievably squalid lives. This is the Northern Ireland situation in 1971 as it might have been seen by a black ops military expert working for an unnamed third country. It's like an army training film. GIve it a miss unless you like watching violence portrayed on screen. Stylistically, this film seems heavily indebted to Matteo Garrone's "Gomorrah" (2008) but never reaches anything like the same heights.

Movies about the IRA and the troubles in Northern Ireland have a few problems. Since due to the nature of this conflict people on different sides tend to look and often sound alike they need to be distinguished very clearly. Unfortunately with the fog of the thick accents and the actors who aren't that different looking from each other coupled with 2 factions of the IRA this movie turned out to be hard to follow. The basic story is a British soldier gets left behind in hostile territory in Belfast. He is chased by the IRA. Then there are some rather complex deals between factions. The bombing was scary and well done. But after that things got too hard to follow. Jack O'Connell of Unbroken is a good actor and he looks like he suffered in the role. Don't bother

This film follows a British soldier who gets left behind in Belfast and has to survive the night whilst being hunted down by the enemy. '71 had some moments of intense action, thrilling suspense and plenty of emotion, meaning it had something in it for everyone. When i heard it was another war film, i instantly got an image of what i thought it was going to be but to my surprise it was very different from your average war film. In some ways better and in some worse. The best parts of this movie were when it was focusing on your main protagonist played by Jack O'Connell and showing the different emotions he was going through. You really get o see how certain experiences damaged or changed him and forced him to find ways to survive. This powerful performance is why i liked the first half of this movie more than the second, after the soldier gets lost in Belfast i felt that the film focused a little too much on the secondary characters. They just weren't as well developed and interesting to keep me invested. The second half although did have some intense edge-of-seat moments that helped me get through it. The main downside of this film is that the plot really wasn't all that interesting, it tries to engage you by setting up multiple characters, some of which have ulterior motives but none of them except for a young boy were that interesting. There was some shaky cam in this movie also that at some times was effective but at other times felt a little annoying and unnecessary. This film was a little bit of a disappointment for me after hearing so many good things about it. Despite the let down with the plot the performance by Jack O'Connell will still get you through the movie just enough to be able to enjoy it. - 6

Much to his surprise, a young, inexperienced British soldier, Gary Hook (Jack O'Connell), is posted to Northern Ireland (he is expecting to be sent to Germany). It is the time of the Troubles and he and his fellow squaddies are plunged immediately into a bewildering maelstrom of rioting and factional violence on the mean streets of Belfast. During a brutal melee, Hook becomes separated from his unit. From that moment on, he is a marked man . . . The main action takes place among half-derelict streets and soulless concrete blocks of 'social' housing, all washed with rain and lit by the eerie glow of neon street-lights. A chilling sense of menace pervades this desolate landscape as shadowy figures go about their deadly business. No one is safe in this world, a world in which disputes are contested primarily with the hand-gun, the bomb and the expedient deal. Even, perhaps especially, the forces of law-and-order are not what they seem - as Hook learns to his cost. In this well-crafted and beautifully photographed movie, O'Connell is outstanding as Hook, the infantry's innocent abroad. For much of the time he says little or nothing, but, as his pursuers close in, we still experience every moment of his fear, shock and disorientation with profound intensity. Physical pain is powerfully portrayed during a scene in which his wounds are stitched without the benefit of anaesthetic, an exceptional gut-wrenching sequence. Corey McKinley also gives a superb performance as the Loyalist boy who is already a man, hardened to a life of urban strife. Indeed, the acting overall can hardly be faulted. The camera-work is also quite brilliant; for example, as Hook staggers and stumbles through the streets the camera staggers and stumbles with him, carrying us right into the action. Everything combines to yield an absolutely convincing depiction of human lives reduced to something 'nasty, brutish and short.' A weakness of this movie is that by the end it is difficult to be sure of precisely who has done what to whom and why. Art has perhaps mirrored the complexity and sheer opaqueness of sectarian politics a little too closely. But this does not detract from the overall quality of the viewing experience and the tremendous emotional charge that it delivers. Highly recommended. (Viewed at Screen 3, The Cornerhouse, Manchester, UK on 19th October 2014)

"71" (2014 release from the UK; 100 min.) brings the story of Gary Hook, a British soldier. As the movie opens, we see Gary training with the rest of his platoon. It isn't long before they are informed that they are being sent to deal with "a deteriorating situation in Belfast". Before shipping out, Gary spends some quality time with his son. Upon arriving in Belfast, it isn't long before the platoon is sent out in the streets of Belfast. Due to a blunder by the platoon's lieutenant, soon they find themselves in the midst of a street riot, and they retread. In all of the confusion, Hook is left behind and he runs for his life, being chased by several Catholics bent on killing him. At this point we are 15-20 min. into the movie. Will Hook make it out alive? To tell you more would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out. Several comments: this is the feature debut from French director Yann Demange, and what a remarkable debut it is. "71" is both a top notch political movie and action thriller. How many movies can make that claim? The tension that builds up in the street riots is incredible, and remain palpable later on. Once Hook escapes the first immediate danger, he catches his breath, and only then realizes the horrible position that he finds himself in, and every choice he makes from here on out can be the wrong one. As to the political side, things are not clearly black and white, and in fact the comment is made several times in the movie that "the situation is confused" and we can't always tell who the "good" guys and the "bad" guys are. I suspect that this is an accurate reflection of how things were like back then in Northern Ireland. The cast is, for me anyway, a cast of unknowns. Jack O'Connell as Hook brings an incredible performance. Last but not least, there is an outstanding score for this movie, courtesy of David Holmes (best known for his scores from the Ocean's 11-12-13 series). The movie opened finally opened this weekend at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati, and I couldn't wait to see it. The early evening screening where I saw this at was attended okay. Even though I had high expectations going in, they were met, and then some. In fact, the only negative point I will mention is that at times I had trouble understanding all the lives, due to the (fake or real, I'm not sure) Northern Irish accents. Bottom line: if you are in the mood for a top notch quality political and action drama, you cannot go wrong with this. "71" is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

I tend to avoid most celluloid representations of Northern Irish Troubles - the longest running terrorist campaign in Europe, costing approximately 3000 lives and hundreds of millions of pounds in property damage and displacement - as oversimplified, glossy and biast; The Devil's Own, The Jackal, The Sons of Anarchy (particularly the last) portray Belfast either as some kind of South Central Los Angeles, or a gaudy Roger and Hammerstein set, with preconceived notions of The Troubles, and frankly unrealistically romantic portrayals of (usually Republican) paramilitaries. '71 offers a gritty change of direction and pace. Told from the bewildered (and bewildering) viewpoint of one Gary Hook (an excellent portrayal by Jack O'Connell), a young British Army private marooned in Belfast - he's still in the UK his mates are assured! - after a supposedly straightforward raid goes drastically wrong; we're sucked nto a grimy, claustrophobic race for survival; Gary's race is our race. Hotly pursued by a Provo hit squad, Gary soon learns shocking lessons about trust... Perhaps the thriller element does get somewhat overdone - not as much as Fifty Dead Men Walking, mark - but I was genuinely impressed at the attempt made to grasp the nettle of the turmoil in the early Seventies and break it down for the outsider; how often has the Official v Provisional split been discussed or portrayed in film? The Loyalists are mostly comic relief, but an attempt is made to portray them as real people...just like the ordinary Catholics who risk their lives to aid the stiken Gary. Sean Harris deserves a mention as the devious Military Reaction Force officer (a real undercover outfit) running numerous Protestant and Catholic players; and contrary to some reviewers, barricades and vigilante patrols were fairly common during the early part of the decade - did he never hear of Free Derry? This is an honest attempt to unravel the confusion of Ulster's tragedy for the perspective of a confused outsider, particularly a lone British soldier; it deserves praise for its insight and bravery.

Tracking a young British soldier who fights for his life after being stranded by his unit on the vicious streets of Belfast, this 1971-set thriller is as grubby, tense and frenetic as the Northern Ireland conflict itself. Debutant Yann Demange does a sterling job in the director's chair, bringing a Paul Greengrass-esque urgency to the action with a combination of regular close-up shots and (not-too-shaky) hand-held camera work. Demange wisely opts for a quality over quantity approach to the brutal violence too, resulting in a few impactful events of savagery and gore that enhance the tension and dread rather than exploit it. Occurring over one night only, Demange – working from Gregory Burke's sparing, taut script – wrings suspense from moments as small as an uncomfortable conversation in a bar, and as big as a cat-and-mouse set piece in an apartment complex or the dazed aftermath of an explosion. It's not all smooth sailing though. The relatively unexplained bookending scenes are a tad cheesy and add little, whilst the bulk of the supporting characters are rarely more than stereotypes, albeit played with gusto. But this movie unmistakably belongs to lead actor, and recent BAFTA Rising Star winner, Jack O'Connell. His Private Gary Hook is resilient yet fragile, strong-willed yet frightened, making him a relatable everyman who will do anything to stay alive. It's not a film you could call "fun", but it's a riveting watch that rewards those willing to be immersed in its gritty and uncompromising survival story.

Jack O'Connell plays Gary Hook, a private in the British Army sent to Belfast, who finds himself separated from his men during a raid that turns into a riot. His mission thereon is to survive the night and get back to his barracks. This is the entire plot – or perhaps should have been. Events are complicated by Captain Sandy Browning's (Sean Harris) undercover operatives, whose methods are, shall we say, 'questionable' and whose allegiances are 'fluid'. I wonder about the casting of the ever-excellent Harris in a role that seems to demand brawny over creepy, but it shouldn't detract from what is a very accomplished directorial debut from Yann Demange. Gregory Burke's script stripped down to the point of sparseness. There's a moment when a sympathetic doctor explains the entire structure of the military hierarchy through a handful of choice words, three of which are the same and begin with "C". The screenplay is merely a vehicle for the experience of one soldier – one pawn – as he witnesses someone else's war from the inside. It's an intense experience; a brisk exercise in tension and spasms of violence, rather than out-and-out action. Mirroring the horrifying situation in Northern Ireland at the time, there's a sense that anyone can die, any time, in the blink of an eye. The evocation of the period is impressive, without resorting to TV clips and newsreels; instead, it's all crap cars, crapper clothes, and mum-hair. As high concept thrillers go, there are no new ideas as such, simply a new setting in which to deposit those old ideas. Permeating is an air of John Carpenter's Escape from New York – and I would have preferred more Carpenter luridness and less Greengrass realism – as well as hints of Children of Men, particularly in one single-take sequence involving a pub bombing. Demange doesn't shy away from the violence but nor does he shy from the effects of doing violence to others. This is a film about the perpetrators of pain, briefly exploring the theme of culpability. Hook is just a grunt, put in a situation where he must kill or be killed. Can he be held responsible for what he must do next? Embodying this anguish, it's another very strong performance from O'Connell. '71, Starred Up, and the forthcoming Unbroken should cement him as the new British face of brutal cinema. I'm not sure '71 is a film to be taken totally seriously – indeed, it never quite resolves its dual identity as a chase-'em-up and an issue movie – but Yann Demange is a serious new talent to watch.

The tense scenes were fantastic and at times 71 was shocking, gripping and captivating. For me the first 30 minutes where you are introduced to the characters, the armies and authorities and when the British Army are deployed in Northern Ireland, were stand out, especially compared to what followed. Apart from a few dodgy accents, I thought the acting was great. Jack O'Connell was brilliant, but not given as interesting role as he was previously in Starred-UP. However 71 was let down by it quickly drifting into a thriller/action film, when Jack's character is left abandoned behind territory lines. From this moment on I encountered the scenes of violence more pornographic than necessary. All seemed a bit crass and typical. I would recommend seeing it, but ultimately it was a let down by the story-telling of one character rather than actually digging deep into the political problem. Shame.

'War is hell', many films have made such a statement about the nature of war, and thankfully '71 is decidedly in the 'War is hell' camp. What '71 adds is how disorienting and confusing war can be. Set in Belfast, Northern Ireland in 1971, the film portrays the brutality of guerrilla warfare through the eyes of a single soldier; Gary Cook (played by Jack O'Connell). We are introduced to Cook as a British recruit whose training is cut short due to the immediate need for more men on the battle lines. Shortly after his regiment is sent out on a mission to 'reassure the people', a riot breaks out and Cook finds himself cut off from his group and behind enemy lines. Worse yet, a particularly blood-thirsty faction of the IRA are on his tail. Cook is terrified and alone and O'Connell portrays this brilliantly in an almost wordless performance. '71 never spells anything out to the audience, and the result is baffling and effective. In the film there are essentially three groups; The British faction that Cook was once a part of, the IRA faction attempting to catch Cook, and finally Cook and the people who help him. However, the lines between the three groups are not as defined as they might appear. The British faction that is attempting the rescue mission has to rely on Irish inside men, some of whom may be part of the IRA group attempting to capture Cook. It is also unclear whose side the men who help Cook are on, are they simply being generous or is their intent more malicious? For the most part, the audience shares his confusion, as many of the character's true allegiances are left unanswered for the majority of the film. The debut feature from TV veteran Yann Demange, '71 is a showcase of great things to come. A tight thriller with an almost minimalist aesthetic, the film works breathlessly, and during the action set pieces, the film soars. The action is shot often down long narrow corridors using hand held cameras while the throbbing soundtrack adds to the tension, a stylistic cross between Paul Greengrass and John Carpenter. The only stumble of the film is undoubtedly its climax, a single fault in an otherwise flawless screenplay by Gregory Burke. It is the one moment the film feels forced, the result a reminder that what we are watching is a movie. It's a shame because, until that moment, the characters decisions have felt so natural and organic. However, this is a small quibble, and one that will likely be forgiven by those caught up in the action. '71 is a highly engrossing and entertaining film and Jack O'Connell gives a performance not to be missed. It is unfortunate that there hasn't been any attempt made to advertise the film, which is surely to account for its currently disappointing run in theatres. My girlfriend and I saw it opening weekend and were the only people in the theatre, hopefully it will have more success on DVD and Blue ray.