The Horseman

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The Horseman

source: The Horseman

The Horseman, a product of Australian cinema, is simply an amazing piece of work; it is a grim and stark journey. Centring around the aftershock of the death of layman Christian's (played here by Peter Marshall with astonishing composure and calm, and too, his first major lead role in a movie) teenage daughter from a drug overdose, her somewhat voluntary involvement in an extremely seedy part of the sex industry and the progression of a father's wrath and bloodletting fury of revenge and retribution. It's a reflective look into the plight of an anguished father and the road trip he must take to find the parasites that took a part in the exploitation of innocence and the poetic justice one must serve upon the guilty. The subject matter is done with a scent of finesse that holds an air of admiration and respect for this guilt-ridden father, he's nasty, he's mean but he's also driven and director, writer, producer and editor Steven Kastrissios, along with cinematographer Mark Broadbent, and in particular the stunt department, have shown, once again, that Australian cinema is a tour de force to be recognised, and respected. With its magnificent and complex fight sequences, tight direction and empathetic undercurrent, the overall tone is not done to the extremes that it may seem an overdose of violence for the sake of violence. Not for one-minute does the slaughter, both visually and physically, feel too contrived, it may be a harrowing experience, and journey too, for the viewer, as too the father who has now crossed the line, but its pacing between each bloody action brings the film back to the point of honesty. We are left viewing, literally, on the edge of our seats as the plight runs a wry and we are constantly left unknowing as to what may happen next, and to whom and how. It's all an adrenalin rush of mixed emotions of revelation, sympathy, disgust, shock and compassion, such is the power of the delivery of Steven Kastrissios's work here. Transcending beyond the blurred sanity, The Horseman is a brutal reminder of a subculture that tests the morals of those who dare to question its ethics' and looks into the mind of those who have found the answer; crossing boundaries and finding new strengths, it's a rude wakening that in the murky mist of illicit brutality, at times even the wrong answer may be the only alternative.

It's a very rare revenge flick that's willing to explore what can happen if the often ill-informed protagonists go off the rails in their quest. It's even rarer one that's actually willing to acknowledge that what starts out as a quest for righteous retribution can end up blighting innocent lives. Truth to tell, I've never seen a "revenge" film that goes nearly far enough in this direction for my liking; I'm still waiting to see the story of a revenger who goes off, accidentally kills completely the wrong people and then discovers his mistake when *their* furious loved ones track *him* down. The Horseman isn't that ideal revenge movie, but it nevertheless gets points for its willingness to go into the territories of moral confusion previously explored by disturbing noirs like Memento and Irreversible. It also gets points for its willingness to show the squalid, despairing nature of a quest for revenge, a process in which the meting-out of "justice" is secondary, and the venting of the perpetrator's crushing grief and choking rage is primary. The lead playing the revenger brings out these elements beautifully, and manages his character's transitions from bewildered numbness to insane fury -- and finally to horrified desperation in the final act as he belatedly realizes what his antics have led to -- skilfully and convincingly. His performance, and this overall context for most of the film's brutal and graphic violence, puts The Horseman a cut above the "torture *" genre of films like Saw and Hostel, to which I've seen it (unfairly) compared in some reviews here. There were the makings, then, of a low-budget classic here. So why only a 6? Unfortunately, the Horseman proves once again how hard it is to craft that all-important final act. The climactic encounter with the scummiest of the scum who'd originally been in our semi-hero's sights gets off to a promising start, but it drags through such a ridiculous number of reversals and increasingly over-the-top Feats of Superhuman Bloody-Mindedness from everyone involved that by its end it's more cartoonish than a pro wrestling match. This is a shame, but hopefully the director will be able to build on the good and steer away from the absurd in future efforts.