Having finally come to North America after receiving much acclaim overseas in Britain, the historical thriller '71 proves that it deserves every bit of praise it's gotten.
Gary Hook (Jack O'Connell) is a British soldier who, after being deployed in Belfast, is accidentally left behind after a riot drives his unit away from the area. Soon he's being chased by hostile terrorist forces and needs to find a way to safety. Set during the height of the Troubles in 1971, '71 takes on a particularly unstable time in Northern Irish history and proves that it's the perfect place for an action thriller. The inherent danger of a town where you could be killed by terrorists at any moment, combined with Hook's increasingly injured, defenceless state, makes for some incredibly intense moments, especially in early parts where the audience is just as lost and confused as he is. Any time there's even a slight feeling of safety, something is sure to go wrong. The result is gripping: Danger is around every corner,
This wouldn't be nearly as exciting, however, without Yann Demange's excellent direction. This is Demange's theatrical debut, and it's a promising note to start on. Nearly every element of the film is fastened to just the right place to keep the momentum moving forward. The combination of audiovisual elements keeps the tension high and the atmosphere dark, while the images on display are gruesome and memorable. O'Connell, meanwhile, fits neatly into Hook's shoes, He's able to bring the emotion needed for the performance, properly conveying the fear and confusion that Hook feels for much of the film. The supporting cast is just as good, elevating the already solid material they're given.
Being a film about such a turbulent time period as the Troubles, '71 inevitably paints some picture of the situation at the time. Said picture is a brutal image: crowds of rioters fill the streets and a bomb could go off at any place at any moment. What's a little less vivid is the script, as before long the political aspect of the film becomes just a little muddled. It's still easy to tell what's going on, but sometimes character affiliations can become a little blurry. With a film like this, though, it hardly matters.
'71 is the first great edge-of-your-seat thriller of the year, at least for North Americans. It seems that the great independent films are finally trickling down to movie theatres outside of the major coastal cities, and so we have here what is the best movie of the year so far. It's an intense, exhilarating sit that provides a neat snapshot of the situation in Northern Ireland in 1971, and is the single most brutal sit to be had at the movies since Whiplash. Don't miss it.
9/10
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