Tyrannosaur (2011)

Tyrannosaur is hard to watch. But it's a perfect film. Olivia Colman was robbed of a BAFTA Nomination, which she would have won, and of an Academy Award nomination, for best actress, which she also would have won. To put it frankly, Colman's performance id one of the best performances I've ever seen by an actor, male or female. She's so honest, vulnerable, and like-able. She'll make you weep. Peter Mullan is also tremendous, another actor robbed of a BAFTA and Academy Award nomination. Considne's script is smart, emotional, brutal, and honest, as is his direction. Tyrannosaur is so good, It's better than Dead Man's Shoes and Saving Private Ryan. 10 out of 10.

The British film industry. While never being the juggernaut that is the American film industry, it can still give the world great films, many of which are highly regarded. Sure, many recent British films have been utter atrocities, but there are definitely many diamonds among the rough, the best of recent years being The Impostor. One reason that many British films have been poor is that they're too real. Sure, many films are aided by the fact they're realistic, but still have some element of escapism. However, these recent British films have attempted to reveal how modern Britain is 'Broken Britain', and how it isn't just something the tabloids write in order to sell more papers (because Britain was always perfect now, wasn't it?), and because of it while many are gritty and bleak, they are often boringly one-note and forget to entertain at all. This film unfortunately falls into that trap, as while it is gritty, dark and has collection of depressed, moody characters, you won't care due to how little it has to offer outside of that and by the end you go 'so what?'The story is that Joseph, a Scottish middle aged man, is having a rough life, getting into fights with teenagers, his neighbours and is resentful of everyone he meets. After one of his fights, he runs and hides in a charity shop owned by Hannah, who he resents due to her beliefs and her seemingly perfect life. However, as he comes to discover, she is more pain than he first thinks and takes her in, forming a strong friendship. Now while the story may sound interesting at first, it suffers from a major problem that affects the rest of the movie: it is so interested in piling on the darkness of their lives (i.e. Spoilers Joseph killing his dog, Joseph's best friend dying of cancer, Hannah being urinated on by her abusive one- dimensional husband, Hannah describing why she is infertile) that eventually you lose interest, due to how boringly one-note they become and the amount of plot holes that there are.(i.e. why doesn't Hannah divorce her husband, considering how vile he is to her? why doesn't anyone call the police when something bad happens?)This problem also affects the rest of the movie as well. The characters are either depressed, horrible, violent or a mixture of the three and while that make them seem more realistic, it doesn't make them in any more intriguing or interesting, as none of them ever extend beyond that. Sure, this isn't as bad as American Beauty where ALL of the characters were annoyingly whiny, despite their luxuries (which none of the characters have in this film), but they're still very uninteresting. It doesn't help that the acting, while good, isn't outstanding. Sure, there has been much written about how good Olivia Colman is, and how she should have been nominated for more awards than she was, but she isn't that good. Sure she's a great actress, but she's about as good as everyone else in this movie, which is good, but doesn't go beyond what her character is restricted to. Unlike another underrated female performance of Pam Grier in Jackie Brown, where everyone is great, but she was a standout who truly owns her role, Olivia Colman doesn't stand out, as she doesn't go beyond the restrictions of her character or show any personality in the role, much like everyone else.It doesn't help that none of these characters get any sort of redemption throughout the film. If Paddy Considine was to make all of this misery truly mean something, than he would've had these characters rise above it, and truly make something of their lives despite their problems. However, this never happens, and the characters don't really change that much. Sure this may be like "real life", but this sense of realism is hampered by the extremes these characters go to by the end of the film. (SPOLIER) For example, when Joseph's younger friend is attacked by a dog, he kills it, rather than letting it slide or calling the police. At least while there are hints that his character will change by the end, as he sends a letter to Hannah telling her that he is getting his life back on track, Hannah isn't so lucky. Instead of divorcing her husband or (again) calling the police to get him arrested for his abuse, she (SPOLIER) kills him, in a very violent manner I should add. I understand that she was still in love with him to get any help as there are relationships like that in the real world (even if I hope there aren't many couples similar to Hannah and her husband), but if she was that in love with them, would she have really gone to that extreme? It doesn't seem very plausible, as it is completely out of character for her. It's more worrying considering that (SPOLIER) despite being in prison, seems happier that he is gone. What kind of message is that sending out? That murder solves all problems? I understand that I'm probably reading too much into this, but that is what it comes across as.Overall, while the acting is good and there are some nice scenes here and there, there isn't enough in Tyrannosaur to make it worth watching, and by the end of this miserable bore, you'll feel like you've wasted an hour and a half of your life that you could have used more productively rather than making it become extinct by watching this film. Stick to acting, Paddy.

Hannah: I feel safe with you. Joseph: Nobody's safe with me.This was a damn good movie. One that holds you tight and won't let go. One that shakes you up and once again points out that your everyday life isn't so bad. A fairly heavy movie with partner violence as an emotional topic, intertwined with a religious layer. It's not exactly a movie you should watch if you are in an emotional dip, because it's actually a terrible dark depressing film.The acting performance of Mullan and Colman was overwhelming and impressive. 2 Tormented souls who find each other and ultimately find support in each other. Joseph a terribly aggressive loner who apparently already battered his wife and now lives in a daily haze of alcohol. It's in such a drunk moment that the aggression and rage appears once and while in such a terrible way that he even kicks his faithful dog to death. Or he starts threatening a teenager in a pub. Eventually, he runs into a secondhand clothing store, where he meets Hannah. A deeply religious woman who is a victim of sexual violence and abuse by her husband. Despite that they are actually opposites, they try to cling to each other and support each other.The strength of the movie is its realism. The image of rage and violence. I don't think any of the images or segments used in this movie is exaggerated. It's not an easy film to watch and it leaves a bitter aftertaste. But the film touched me deeply and was full of intense feelings.The best part was the funeral of Joseph's friend, where everyone in the pub is drinking a beer and someone sings a sensitive song on his guitar. A time when you briefly see the two main characters flourishing, and that they can enjoy the simple things in life. More reviews at http://opinion-as-a-moviefreak.blogspot.be/

To start with i thought this film was brilliantly acted,the main leads played by Peter Mullen and Olivia Colman were so realistic and their different type of living conditions says a lot about modern England today.She lives in a nice home in a nice part of town but has an abusive husband,her dilemma is it worth putting up with him?as she has nowhere else to go.He on the other hand lives in poverty because he has in a way just given up,he knows its to late to better himself and to change his life style.So when the two opposite characters meet each other they form a sort of bond and give each other a sense of hope. However the negatives i had with this film was with the Peter Mullen character,in the films opening scene he gets angry and takes his spite out on his dog who he brutally kicks,he then leaves his dog to die alone in a cold shed over night.I was disgusted with this scene and thought he should have been arrested and charged.Also later on in the film he kills the neighbours staff who i don't think was entirely to blame for what happened to the little boy. Why does the film have to use a Staffordshire Bullterrier as the bad dog?this breed is already misunderstood ,on an average week the statistics of Staffordshire Bullterriers who get put to sleep in pounds across the UK is as high as 80,most are very loving dogs that mix well with others and generally love people.Unfortunately they have been overbred and a lot end up as strays and dumped before they reach aduldhood.This film has not done their breed any favours so for this reason i am giving the film 5 out of 10