Sir Michael Caine is Harry Brown. You don’t want to mess with Harry Brown. At first glance, he’s your typical old Englishmen trying to live the rest of his life in the area he knows. However, his community is being overrun by gangs and young kids doing drugs and up to no good. The police don’t have much presence and most of them would rather just leave the area alone rather than do something about the crime. Initially, Harry Brown is the same way…he turns the other cheek until his best friend has enough and decides to take matters into his own hands. His friend didn’t have much luck…but he’s not Harry Brown….and Harry Brown is a badass.
This is a dark drama. The action is really just violence and it’s pretty realistic. Harry Brown is an ex-serviceman so he has the set of skills needed to kick some ass and take names (sound familiar?). He has one goal in mind: to get revenge for his old friend and clean up his community while he’s at it. He’s had enough and if the police aren’t going to do anything about it, well, he is.
The story is pretty basic and the sequence is pretty similar to movies like Clint Eastwood’s Gran Torino and Taken. However, this is Sir Michael Caine, one of the greatest actors of our time and he does an amazing job acting in this movie. As Harry Brown becomes a vigilante and goes on his mission to get retribution for his friend, he runs into a couple of interesting story lines and characters. There is one cop, played by Emily Mortimer, who wants to do the right thing and she and Caine keep crossing paths for better or worse. With these extra twists, the movie doesn’t get confusing and doesn’t go in depth into any of the side stories which is good as it does keep the audience engaged in the story until the final scenes which actually climax in a mini bedlam. Unlike other films, the action in this one isn’t over the top…maybe because the UK doesn’t allow guns and so people with guns is over the top for them. I really like this fact about the film though; it keeps it more realistic. It’s as if this can be anywhere and happen to anyone.
I’m having a little difficulty writing this review because I’m not too sure what to say. I did enjoy the movie and think others will be entertained…but it’s not your typical “have to see” action film. It’s not going to break any blockbuster records or have you running to the theater to see the movie, but while you’re watching the movie, you get pulled in to this not so fictitious world and you try to stop yourself from blinking so you don’t miss the next scene. Maybe that’s why it wasn’t picked up by a major studio but still will be shown in limited theaters in the US…but if it’s playing by you, you should definitely check it out.
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Tags: Charlie Creed-Miles, Emily Mortimer, Harry Brown, Liam Cunningham, Michael Caine, South By Southwest, SXSW
Matthew Fong created advancescreenings.com and is the lead contributor. He watches every type of movie and will try almost anything twice. You can follow him on twitter here: @matthewfong
