Indie Gems: Filth

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Nothing but filth.

To call Bruce (James McAvoy) a corrupt cop would be an understatement. This guy is pretty much an awful human being. He's determined to solve a murder case to secure a promotion at his job. He bullies his co-workers, played by Jamie Bell, Imogen Poots, and Emun Elliott. He's cruel to his "best friend" Bladesey (Eddie Marsan) and prank calls his wife. (Shirley Henderson) He harasses witnesses (Iain DeCaestecker) envisions his estranged wife (Shauna MacDonald) pining for him after he gets this promotion and also hallucinates dramatic meetings with his psychiatrist. (Jim Broadbent)

This movie is a perfect example of how having an unlikable character can still work. Not everyone has to be a hero or an anti hero, they just need to be interesting or entertaining, and Bruce was both of those. He's despicable, but he does need help. McAvoy was brilliant in this role, which is probably the most extreme that I've seen him in. The supporting cast was wonderful in their roles as well. There were so many good Scottish/English actors in this. (and so many from Harry Potter) it was a joy to watch them.

The film is very fast paced and pretty vulgar, but it's a fascinating story with great performances. For a comparison, I recently watched McAvoy in Welcome to the Punch and this film is far better.

Grade: A

Memorable Quote: "Same rules apply." - Bruce (James McAvoy)

Comments

  1. Candice FrederickSeptember 6, 2014 at 10:28 AM

    woooooo james mcavoy! *runs to netflix*

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamSeptember 7, 2014 at 7:43 AM

      Yes! I think this actually comes on Instant Stream soon.

      Delete
  2. s.September 8, 2014 at 2:03 PM

    I cannot believe what situations I saw Jaime Bell in thanks to this and Nymphomaniac. There should be some sort of warning about that before those films :)

    McAvoy was amazing in this and surprisingly the cinematography was just gorgeous, which I didn't expect when witnessing the things his character did.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamSeptember 8, 2014 at 2:57 PM

      lol. Jaime Bell picks some weird shit to do in movies. The cinematography was great. I just really dug this one.

      Delete
  3. Alex WithrowSeptember 8, 2014 at 4:02 PM

    Grade A?! Was kind of torn about it, but I'm all over this film now. Nice review!

    ReplyDelete
  4. UnknownSeptember 11, 2014 at 10:54 AM

    Love love love James McAvoy! Haven't seen this yet (it is on the list, but the list is VERY long!). Might have to do a JM marathon for this and Welcome to the Punch (which I started on a plane but fell asleep, oops!)

    Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that me and Allie at Flick Chicks have nominated you for a One Lovely Blog Award, the details are here http://goo.gl/j0rnU7. Happy nominating!

    - Jenna

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamSeptember 11, 2014 at 11:55 AM

      Thank you! Welcome to the Punch was soooooooo boring. I didn't care for it at all. Filth is much better.

      Delete
  5. Lights Camera ReactionSeptember 12, 2014 at 5:36 PM

    Yay! I really loved this film too, it was so crazy, fun and yet really sad. McAvoy was just incredible and really worked with everything - loved it.

    Plus, I loved the soundtrack too!

    ReplyDelete
  6. JoshDecember 2, 2014 at 2:50 PM

    I liked the film a little less (B), but McAvoy is outstanding. Everyone should watch this and Dom Hemingway for two insane performances.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamDecember 3, 2014 at 6:46 AM

      I loved both of those films. Great performances indeed.

      Delete

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