Harrigan

Dark and gritty. Absolutely loved it - gripping story and a bit different from your typical gangster film. Really like the setting. Would love to see more like this!

The story about sargant 'arrigan in the northeast england in the poor early 70's are a story about a bit crazed but fair policeman returning from the far east,there batteling the hong kong mobsters, and bringing bakc the same procedures and violence used there,to the mill of street crimes in his hometown. its a tv-movie quality flick, with loads of slang and swearing,the acting are at best average, but mostly stiff and read out of the script,that arent that fascinating. though the revenge is darn sweet in the end, you really feel the toothless force of the police,and how they hide their heads in the muddy pitch of newcastle, never dearing the lawless. its a one watch in a lifetime flick,no more than that thinks the grumpy old man

Detective Harrigan (Stephen Tompkinson) returns to his old neighborhood after working in Hong Kong. It is Jan. 1974. Due to budgets cuts, the police work at reduced pay and numbers. Some of the precincts have been closed. Hooligans control the streets and in Harrigan's neighborhood it is Dunstan (Craig Conway) a man who wears a clown mask when he kills. Harrigan also deals with a criminal justice system that is more criminal than justice. He has decided to reopen a precinct right in the middle of the worst area, hand selecting a few work mates to come with him. He works outside the law to achieve results, creating problems as well as solving them. The film is violent with the last 15 minutes going to the extreme. While I gave it 6 stars, it is not a film I would recommend.

I was impressed with Tompkinson in the lead role and think he carried the film almost single- handedly, although I would also give a special mention to the Acting Chief of police character. It was a shame he didn't have more scenes because he and Tompkinson worked well together.I found the script overly clichéd. Also, it felt like it was missing half an hour's worth of introduction -the allusions of histories between the characters was far too esoteric, to the point that I hardly cared and just had to accept that 'something happened'. Not that it's necessarily a bad thing, but the production had more of the feel of a play rather than a film. If I were to dwell on the nine-foot man's second appearance (those of you who have seen it will know what I'm referring to) then I'd probably knock off another star.

For a movie that at first glance is going to be a vigilante cops just kicking ass, and taking back the streets, it sure has a hard time getting there. I really Enjoyed the way that this movie didn't insist that anyone was really safe as long as the bad people are in control. There are a lot of brave real people fighting a new battle every generation in the streets to keep us all safe all the time. This movie opens with a little bit of a quick update on the situation in the world, and you get caught off guard for the first time right there I'll bet. The acting is nothing short of excellent by even the lowest player throwing stones. The bitter world really feels cold. I would recommend this one, but it is very British, there is no Hollywood ending, and it feels like a really long episode of original Life on Mars, I was really expecting to hear someone saying your nicked at one point even. Lots of violence, the language is really not so bad, but this one is not for kids, unless you need to smarten them brats up.

This really is a very worthwhile movie, good story line and quite believable. I don't understand earlier comments about the budget for this film and how it was spent, I have seen some real shockers for the same budget (Last Passenger for one, now that was a painful movie to watch with not an original concept anywhere). The characters are quickly developed and have reasonable depth. The script was nicely put together and not over-done. Dark and dreary was well portrayed as were the emotions of the situation. I would recommend this movie, an interesting watch.

One of the main criteria that I judge movies by is how they motivate or don't motivate me to go check out more about them and this movie definitely motivated me. I grew up through the 70's and I was surprised when the movie stated in the beginning that Britain was going through a period of strife with a 3 day work week and blackouts because they were rationing power. Now mind you, I was in High School and needless to say World News was not at the top of my list of things to keep informed about but I was shocked that I had somehow missed that bit of recent history. In any case, onto the movie. I loved the acting, the grittiness of the characters and the downright humanity of it all. I didn't feel like I was watching a movie as much as I was watching a story being told about real people and real events. Kudos to everyone who had a part in this from the best boy up to the Executive Producer. If you want to watch a good movie made on what would today be considered a shoestring budget, you need to watch "Harrigan"

On viewing this film you have to take into account thats it is an Indi production with a first time Director Vince Woods and entirely funded by individuals including lead cast then you watch the film and ask how did they make a period seventies film with riots and action scenes with such little resource. Had this been a French made film it would already have had awards . It is an unbelievably impressive film dark gritty and rough in the art of film making a real gem. Stephen Tompkinson takes the lead role in an untypical hard faced character that is very different to his recent TV roles but with support from Craig Conway as the disgusting paedophile criminal opposite its easy to take sides for the good and sit on the edge of your seat while the battle for control of the Newcastle streets between these two characters unfolds. I predict at least cult status for this violent and dark piece of policing history.

When someone says "British Crime Drama" I know what to expect, either Danny Dyer or another Mockney Guy Ritchie knock-off. So, it was a real delight to see that Harrigan is neither. Instead of geezers and shooters, Harrigan is moody, dark and tense crime drama set in Newcastle-upon-Tyne in the 1970's. Stephen Tompkinson is a refreshing change from the usual, in that he delivers a powerful, but essentially understated performance in the main role. The same is true of the supporting cast, who manage to give very solid performances. On top of this, the film is beautifully shot. James McAleer, the DOP, has managed to get just the right balance between the darkness of the story and the warm tones of the period. The movie is based on the real life experiences of a retired copper, and because if this it does offer up some new ideas, whilst not deviating too far from what you'd expect from a maverick cop drama. It's a brave production team that takes on a period drama on a British independent movie budget, but this one manages to pull it off with a certain amount of style.

This film is one of the best films I have seen this year. The lead actor Stephen Tompkinson plays the role of Harrigan superbly, with some really gritty, dark scenes that convey the deprivation in the north east during the industrial decline of the early 1970's. Overall the storyline captured the withdrawal of the upper police ranks from the crime hot-spots to their comfy desk jobs leaving the old hands to sort the underworld and petty criminals out. The direction and cinema-topography portray Newcastle honestly, the production is in many ways more befitting of a Hollywood blockbuster that a low budget British independent film. The director, Vince Woods, is definitely one to watch for the future and I look forward to hopefully seeing more output from him. Congratulations should also go to the screenplay writer, who's experiences I can imagine have been drawn upon in this film.