NZIFF: Bring Them Down (1)

Set amongst the rugged countryside of Western Ireland, Christopher Abbot (Poor Things) and Barry Keoghan (Saltburn) deliver standout performances in a thriller that is as shocking as the landscape is serene.

This thriller about two rival farming families in Ireland turns neighbours from hell up to the max. Michael (Christopher Abbot) is a sheep farmer living with his disabled father and still reeling from the guilt of causing the car accident that killed his mother. He lives a life of isolation and devoted to working the farm. When two of his rams turn up dead on an adjacent property he has reason to believe that his neighbour's son, Jack (Barry Keoghan), has something to do with it. When Michael finds Jack trying to sell his, very much alive, rams, Jack denies they are Michael's, which leads to a series of escalations and revenge threatening the downfall of both families.

A gripping portrait what happens when toxic masculinity and the refusal to back down gets in the way of proper communication and violence is seen as the only option. The leads both deliver performances that prove that they are two of the best young actors of their generation. Told in a non-linear fashion that gives us a chance to delve deeper into each family's motivations, while never letting up the momentum that makes this an intense watch. — Jordan Salomen

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