Trespass Against Us (2017)

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday MorningThe Cutlers are a traveller family living on the outskirts of Gloustershire. Colby (Brendan Gleeson) is the patriarch of the clan, the father figure with a contempt for authority, the education system and various other outside institutions that don't fit around the gypsy lifestyle. He uses a dummy of a policeman for target practise, and organizes raids on million dollar mansions owned by the rich. His son Chad (Michael Fassbender) wants a better life for his son Tyson (Georgie Smith), who he sends to a mainstream school, and wants out of the gypsy world. But after a raid on a judge's home goes awry, he finds himself plunged into a situation that spirals out of control, as the police crack down hard on them.My local community has, in recent times, suffered at the hands of the travelling community, who've caused disruption rolling up on various car parks and such (in schools, and cinemas, ironically enough...), leaving much mess behind and taking up valuable police resources in getting rid of them. This lawless culture would seem to leave a blight on many places around the country, with similar tales being reported in various media outlets. With his feature length debut, director Adam Smith attempts to bring the world to the forefront in a traditional crime story about loyalty, honour and respect that doesn't reach any dizzying heights, but still demands your attention and keeps you gripped till the end.It's one of those films where the performances drive the movie, and the star of the show would have to be Gleason, who has the most effective presence as the head of the clan, commanding respect and undivided attention from his brethren, but a definite runner up would be Fassbender, who creates an authentic embodiment of a real life gypsy, from his language to his mannerisms and swagger. A supporting cast including Lyndsey Marshal and Sean Harris, have equal kudos, but unavoidably have more limited screen time to display it.Story wise, it's compelling and mighty enough, but there's just not enough of a solid structure to it to make it quite as dynamic as it could have been. Still, it could have been a lot worse, and Smith at least has the respite to include some humour in the proceedings in the form of some witty writing. You won't come away loving gypsies any more, but you'll at least be woken up to the filmic potential their background provides. ***

A man looks to find a way to escape the criminal ways of his outlaw family. Although it does touch a good and touching subject about Family and Parenting 'Trespass Against Us' suffers from a troubled script and an awkward shift of tone threw out the whole thing. For example the movie starts in this awkward way with Fassbender's son driving a car and he basically just sits there laughing about it. Plus the dialogue from both Fassbender and Gleeson is also a big issue since it's kinda over the top sometimes and kinda dumb. The drama also doesn't work at all and it's a waste of both talent and time for both of this 2 great actors. (5/10)

"Here's the truth, you pass it down from father to son. From father, son, grandson." Chad Cutler (Fassbender) has been involved in his dad Colby's (Gleeson) for his entire life. Chad's son is starting to understand what is going on and Chad makes a decision to get out of the family business. Things aren't always as easy as they seem though. This is a movie I had pretty high expectations for. Both of the main actors are great and this is really my style of movie. That being said I can't remember the last time I was this disappointed in one. I really really struggled to get into this movie and there never really seemed to be a plot or something to keep the story moving forward. The acting is great, but that can only take a movie so far. I'm sure many people will enjoy this one, but as for me I got bored early on and never really got to a point where I cared about what was going on. Overall, great acting but so slow an almost uninspired. One of the biggest disappointments I have seen in a long time. I sadly give this a C.

Firstly, this film is not about Gypsies or gangsters as has been said in some reviews, it's a story of a group of travelers, a very different set of people to gypsies and arguably not what popular opinion may define as gangsters.It follows the Cutler family and some others who live in a semi-permanent camp and take to criminal deeds to make ends meet. The head of the family is Colby played brilliantly by Brendan Gleeson, and his son Chad played just as brilliantly by Michael Fassbender takes a lead role. The story is nothing new or exciting, the group struggle to survive and Chad along with his girlfriend Kelly and their 2 kids is keen to break free form the life they lead and do better. The father and the rest of the group want group cohesion and value Chad as an important part of their group especially during criminal endeavours. What sets it apart for me is that the acting is so superb from every single member of the cast that you really get to live the story and experience it. not even Georgie Smith who plays Tyson Cutler (Chad's son) nor Kacie Anderson who plays Chad's daughter put a foot wrong despite some scenes that could be difficult for kids. I would not say as some do that I really felt sorry for Chad's family and routed for them, or that I despised them for being criminals. I didn't make that decision in my mind although I was sad at the mindsets that were portrayed: it's such a shame that people can live this way with no regard for the rest of society. That said I did enjoy the portrayal of the lives and lifestyles by competent actors that made me believe the story. The only down side for me that prevented a 10 was the sometimes difficult filming, yet again this hand-held stuff that seems to be trendy to directors these days, but only serves to make us seasick and unable to focus on where the visuals are leading. I pray that one day some director will realize this is an awful way to film. In a nutshell a decent story, fabulous acting and great direction means a thoroughly enjoyable evening watching this and an after taste that Michael Fassbender reminds me of the superlative that is Daniel Day Lewis.