Title: Dead Man's Shoes (2004)
Description: film review (mild spoilers)
Description: film review (mild spoilers)
Robert Richardson - October 20, 2004 10:53 AM (GMT)
DEAD MAN’S SHOES (2004)
“God will forgive them for what they’ve done. He’ll forgive them, and let them into heaven. I can’t live with that”. British commando Richard (Paddy Considine) intones these words at the beginning of DEAD MAN’S SHOES, prior to returning to the Midland town where he grew up and left several years earlier to join the service. In his absence the louts he knew while growing up have become the low-rent local drug barons, and they were responsible for harm done to his family. Richard is coming home to settle accounts.
Richard’s younger brother Anthony (Toby Kebbell) is a gentle, developmentally disabled man who idolizes his big brother. While Richard was away the local thugs, operating under the thumb of body builder Sonny (Gary Stretch) decided to make Anthony the object of sport. Their stupid jokes escalated to a much more disturbing level during alcohol and drug fuelled binges. Now Richard is back, well aware of what has taken place. He and Anthony are camped out at an abandoned farm on the edge of town, wandering in periodically for Anthony to identify the culprits. Herbie (Stuart Wolfenden, who looks a bit like a young Donald Pleasence) is the weasly pusher who first meets up with them in a café. He notices Richard staring at him, and arrogantly swaggers over to demand “You – who you lookin’ at?” Richard’s profane three word response is like an explosion in Herbie’s face.
Initially Richard chooses to mock the gang by playing pranks on them as well, such as spray painting them while they are passed out. The gang is bewildered – who is doing this? Why? Once Richard is recognized (“I think it was Anthony’s brother”, whines Herbie) Sonny approaches him on a street corner to confront him. Before he can Richard has volunteered “Yeah, it’s me.” He goes so far as to plainly tell them his intent – he’s going to get them all if they don’t get them first, and even tells Sonny where he can be found. The gang seems almost prepared to write off Richard as a nutter until they are made to understand how serious his intent it. Decked in fatigues and gas mask, Richard splits open one gang member’s head with an axe. The body count begins.
Before I saw DEAD MAN’S SHOES all I knew of it was it had been described as a British DEATH WISH. The bleak tone of the film in more in keeping with GET CARTER or STRAW DOGS. Director Shane Meadows has made several interesting films – TWENTYFOURSEVEN (1997), A ROOM FOR ROMEO BRASS (1999) and most recently the romantic comedy-western ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE MIDLANDS (2002). Supposedly he was very unhappy with MIDLANDS, and as a response teamed up with actor Paddy Considine (who made a dynamic, frightening debut in ROMEO BRASS) to write DEAD MAN’S SHOES, then shoot it almost guerilla style on its Derbyshire locales. The subject manner sprang from outrage over personal events close to Meadows that helped him envision his own elaborate revenge fantasy. While there is some humor present in the film this is a revenge thriller, pure and simple. The violence is raw and ugly, a brutal expression of Richard’s single minded mission to destroy. One of the film’s most interesting aspects is the reaction of the gang members. They are either not bright enough or too confused by this threat to properly contend with it, making the terror they feel as they begin to die feel that more palpable.
The entire cast performs well, but Paddy Considine is the show here. He won wide attention for his starring role in the recent IN AMERICA, and also was seen in 24-HOUR PARTY PEOPLE and CLOSE YOUR EYES. He’s a fascinating actor. His performance as Morel in A ROOM FOR ROMEO BRASS was one of the most riveting portrayals of a sociopath on screen in years. In SHOES his time is divided on screen between his scenes with Anthony, conveying his humanity, and his cold, precise stalking of the gang. His soldier is a man whose psychological balance is sliding into an abyss, something he realizes himself but will not be stopped. Someone has to pay, and pay they will.
The supporting cast includes Emily Aston, Neil Bell, George Newton, Seamus O’Neal, Paul Sadot, and Andrew Shim. Danny Cohen’s camera captures well the dreary seasonal hues that accentuate the landscape & provides an appropriate atmosphere of doom.
“God will forgive them for what they’ve done. He’ll forgive them, and let them into heaven. I can’t live with that”. British commando Richard (Paddy Considine) intones these words at the beginning of DEAD MAN’S SHOES, prior to returning to the Midland town where he grew up and left several years earlier to join the service. In his absence the louts he knew while growing up have become the low-rent local drug barons, and they were responsible for harm done to his family. Richard is coming home to settle accounts.
Richard’s younger brother Anthony (Toby Kebbell) is a gentle, developmentally disabled man who idolizes his big brother. While Richard was away the local thugs, operating under the thumb of body builder Sonny (Gary Stretch) decided to make Anthony the object of sport. Their stupid jokes escalated to a much more disturbing level during alcohol and drug fuelled binges. Now Richard is back, well aware of what has taken place. He and Anthony are camped out at an abandoned farm on the edge of town, wandering in periodically for Anthony to identify the culprits. Herbie (Stuart Wolfenden, who looks a bit like a young Donald Pleasence) is the weasly pusher who first meets up with them in a café. He notices Richard staring at him, and arrogantly swaggers over to demand “You – who you lookin’ at?” Richard’s profane three word response is like an explosion in Herbie’s face.
Initially Richard chooses to mock the gang by playing pranks on them as well, such as spray painting them while they are passed out. The gang is bewildered – who is doing this? Why? Once Richard is recognized (“I think it was Anthony’s brother”, whines Herbie) Sonny approaches him on a street corner to confront him. Before he can Richard has volunteered “Yeah, it’s me.” He goes so far as to plainly tell them his intent – he’s going to get them all if they don’t get them first, and even tells Sonny where he can be found. The gang seems almost prepared to write off Richard as a nutter until they are made to understand how serious his intent it. Decked in fatigues and gas mask, Richard splits open one gang member’s head with an axe. The body count begins.
Before I saw DEAD MAN’S SHOES all I knew of it was it had been described as a British DEATH WISH. The bleak tone of the film in more in keeping with GET CARTER or STRAW DOGS. Director Shane Meadows has made several interesting films – TWENTYFOURSEVEN (1997), A ROOM FOR ROMEO BRASS (1999) and most recently the romantic comedy-western ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE MIDLANDS (2002). Supposedly he was very unhappy with MIDLANDS, and as a response teamed up with actor Paddy Considine (who made a dynamic, frightening debut in ROMEO BRASS) to write DEAD MAN’S SHOES, then shoot it almost guerilla style on its Derbyshire locales. The subject manner sprang from outrage over personal events close to Meadows that helped him envision his own elaborate revenge fantasy. While there is some humor present in the film this is a revenge thriller, pure and simple. The violence is raw and ugly, a brutal expression of Richard’s single minded mission to destroy. One of the film’s most interesting aspects is the reaction of the gang members. They are either not bright enough or too confused by this threat to properly contend with it, making the terror they feel as they begin to die feel that more palpable.
The entire cast performs well, but Paddy Considine is the show here. He won wide attention for his starring role in the recent IN AMERICA, and also was seen in 24-HOUR PARTY PEOPLE and CLOSE YOUR EYES. He’s a fascinating actor. His performance as Morel in A ROOM FOR ROMEO BRASS was one of the most riveting portrayals of a sociopath on screen in years. In SHOES his time is divided on screen between his scenes with Anthony, conveying his humanity, and his cold, precise stalking of the gang. His soldier is a man whose psychological balance is sliding into an abyss, something he realizes himself but will not be stopped. Someone has to pay, and pay they will.
The supporting cast includes Emily Aston, Neil Bell, George Newton, Seamus O’Neal, Paul Sadot, and Andrew Shim. Danny Cohen’s camera captures well the dreary seasonal hues that accentuate the landscape & provides an appropriate atmosphere of doom.
Steve Guariento - October 27, 2004 03:24 PM (GMT)
I'm dying to see this, after checking out Paddy Considine's unreservedly brilliant performances in both ROMEO BRASS (endlessly quotable!) and TWENTY-FOUR HOUR PARTY PEOPLE (an astonishingly exact recreation of late New Order manager Rob Gretton). In fact, a friend of mine (also a Romeo Brass fan) and I eagerly drove to catch a screening of the film the other week, only to find the damn thing had sold out. Curses. And now it's vanished completely. Sigh. Looks like I'm going to have to hang on for the DVD, then (assuming my local Blockbuster deigns to stock it; they seem reluctant to help me out by renting THE DREAMERS, blast their eyes).