Its Belfast Northern Ireland, its 1971 and ‘The Troubles’
are at their peak. Part religious
rivalry and part political where generally the Protestants want to remain part
of the United Kingdom and the Catholics are looking for independence from
British rule. The main participants on
the republican side are the Official IRA and a younger splinter group the
Provisional IRA; on the loyalist side are the UVF and UDA. We also have Royal
Ulster Constabulary who tend to support the loyalists and the British Army who
are there to represent the Unite Kingdom.
At the same time the British establishments ‘legalised killing squad’
The Military Reaction Force, are hard at work with their indiscriminate
bombings and killings, employing double agents working from both sides of the
paramilitary divide.
Into this violently explosive situation are sent young
rookie soldiers with very little experience of real life let alone of what is
extensively a bloody civil war where even children and women are part of the on
going conflict. ’71 (2014) tells the story of one such rookie, Gary Hook who
shortly after arriving in Belfast is sent out on a mission to protect the RUC’s
dirty work and during a riot gets separated from his unit along with another
young soldier who gets shot and killed. Hook, abandoned to his own devises
unequipped to tell friend from foe and unable to find his way back through the
hostile streets to his base, begins to grasp the intricacies of the struggle.
Written by Gregory Burke, who is best known for his
theatrical play Black Watch and
directed by Frenchman Yann Demange, whose debut feature film this is, the movie
stars Jack O’Connell in the lead role. O’Connell is a an actor who gets better
with every new film for example Tower Block (2012) and the award
winning prison drama Starred Up (2013) are two movies to
sample if your not familiar with his work. This latest rather gripping and
intriguing movie, that up front has a basic ‘lets get home through enemy
territory’ narrative, but goes a lot further and give’s us a glimpse in to the
underhandedness of the British Government. Its certainly hold’s up its head
along side other interesting drama’s that have involved Irelands recent
troubles including Fifty Dead Men Walking (2008) and Shadow Dancer (2012).
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