TYRANNOSAUR

VINNY SAYS:


This 2011 Film4 drama was written and directed by actor Paddy Considine, who is renowned for his portrayal of dark, complicated characters, and collaborated with Shane Meadow's for his hit This is England, which was pretty bleak. Therefore I wasn't expecting the cheeriest of films, especially with the ominous title 'Tyrannosaur', but his track record suggested he was a pretty experienced director. Oh a little known fact, he wrote the video for the Arctic Monkeys 'Leave Before the Lights Come On'. Anyways back to the review.

Regarding bleak characters and plot, the film did not disappoint. I warn you now if you cannot handle scenes of domestic violence, animal abuse and general misery, then give this one a miss.

However if you can bear some of the more hard-hitting scenes, I would highly recommend this film. As a directorial debut for a feature film, Paddy Considine did VERY well. The script is so realistic it almost made me think he was drawing on some of the themes from real life situations, in that I completely believed in the characters and their world. Indeed the council estate setting matched where Considine is said to have grown up, perhaps why the script felt so true.

Showcasing Olivia Coleman (who plays Sophie in Peep Show) in an incredible performance as Hannah, a Christian woman who works in a charity shop, alongside Joseph, a man with anger problems and a drinking problem. Joseph is played by Peter Mullan, who I was also really impressed by in Trainspotting (he plays Mother Superior) and a little known Film4 flick called My Friend Joe. The two characters work so well together on screen, both unhappy but finding solace in each others company. Both Coleman and Mullan received a load of praise from critics and won awards at Sundance, just in case you don't trust my judgement.

What I thought made the film stand out was the idea that the characters are not as black and white, good and bad, as they originally seem, with the 'good' Hannah having a violent and abusive husband in their 'cosy home', and  'bad' Joseph caring greatly for his neighbours son. The film explores how what appear to be ordinary people can instead act aggressively and violent if they encounter enough adversity, without leaving the characters as stereotypical 'bad people'.  It will change your conceptions of wrong and right, and made me think twice about the type of people I encounter who I would immediately (and probably incorrectly) classify as either yobs with anger problems or a bit mad. As a general rule of thumb I believe that any film that makes you rethink or examine the world around you is a worthwhile film.

STARZ: 4/5

IMOGEN SAYS:


what, its not like jurassic park? land before time?