‘Bring Them Down’ Review: Christopher Abbott and Barry Keoghan Are Compelling as Feuding Shepherds in an Otherwise Dour Irish Drama

As a seasoned movie buff with a penchant for gritty dramas that push the boundaries of bleakness, I can wholeheartedly say that Bring Them Down is a film that will leave you questioning the very nature of shepherding – and perhaps even life itself. This pitch-dark debut from writer-director Christopher Andrews is a brutal, visceral journey into the heart of darkness, where two Irish farmers are locked in a relentless, bloody turf war.

After watching “Bring Them Down“, you might view shepherding in a starkly different light. This pitch-black drama, directed by debutante Christopher Andrews, focuses on two Irish farmers embroiled in a prolonged and brutal struggle over turf. The movie is unremittingly grim, with graphic depictions of livestock violence that outdo most recent films – the one that comes closest is another Irish director’s work, Billy O’Brien, with his 2005 bovine thriller “Isolation“. Despite its gloomy narrative, it’s the powerful performances of leads Christopher Abbott and Barry Keoghan that truly drive this violent first feature.

In a rugged, muddy landscape of western Ireland, two intense actors portray feuding herdsmen, their families locked in a generations-old dispute that swiftly escalates into a fierce confrontation – though it might as well be a skirmish between sheep rather than dogs. The conflict is immediate and relentless from the very first frame of the movie Bring Them Down, but one drawback is that we are thrust straight into this conflict without much prior knowledge of its key characters. This film doesn’t just start running, it barrels forward, careening, colliding, and clashing through each scene with a frenetic energy.

An initial scene hints at a significant past tragedy involving Michael (Abbott), who was involved in a car accident with his sister and mother following her decision to divorce his father, Ray (Colm Meaney). Later on, it becomes clear why this is so: Ray is an overbearing and unpleasant character, spending most of his time confined to a chair in the kitchen due to his ailing knees. He frequently criticizes Michael whenever he enters the room.

This house isn’t exactly a comfortable one, and neither is the one next door where Michael’s sister Caroline (Nora-Jane Noone) resides, now wed to a harsh and alcoholic shepherd named Gary (Paul Ready). Their boy, Jack (Keoghan), is younger than Michael, but despite their family bond, they aren’t particularly close. A squabble over some sheep that Michael alleges were stolen from his herd soon spirals into a chaotic disagreement, involving pocket knives, firearms, numerous maimings, one beheading, and another car collision. This situation shows no signs of resolution.

Watching “Bring Them Down” is intense, yet engaging enough to keep you hooked for at least an hour. Although it’s quite grim and can be a bit of a struggle to get through, the tension and underlying adrenaline are compelling. Andrews skillfully directs his two leads, who bring a touch of humanity to their characters trapped in a vicious cycle of violence and retribution. Abbott convincingly portrays a role demanding fluent Gaelic dialogue (which sounds authentic even to my untrained ears), not to mention being covered in dirt and blood. Keoghan, always captivating to watch, transforms Jack into a fragile young man whose moral compass has been eroded by years of poverty, isolation, and toxic masculinity.

In a desolate part of Ireland, portrayed in the film, appears to be dominated by a powerful force. One particularly gruesome scene involves the clandestine killing of numerous sheep for their hind legs, which are then sold at low prices as meat. The way Andrews and cinematographer Nick Cooke (Sky Peals) depict this massacre, along with other challenging scenes, has a biblical feel to it. They stage these events against an endless landscape of rolling hills, with the sun occasionally peeking through clouds.

However, the director’s grim concept becomes overly extreme, causing a loss of believability as the characters continue to act irrationally and harm themselves. Besides Caroline, who contemplates fleeing to Cork and possibly taking Jack with her, the rest are doomed to a wretched life that appears to have remained unaltered for centuries. According to Ray, his family’s sheep have grazed those hills for five centuries. These individuals seem trapped, both physically and symbolically, in a quagmire, and the bleak ending of Bring Them Down suggests that escape can only be achieved through death or an unlikely survival.

2024-09-09 03:54

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