There's a new fashion going about European filmmakers, and it's to hire a great number of important directors to work on the same project: there's "Paris, Je t'Aime" which was a film consisting of various short films by a great number of highbrow artists which, put together, made up a poignant portrait of the city; then there's "Chacun son Cinéma", another film where various vignettes made up a very intelligent view of people's love for cinema; and now we have the "Red Riding" trilogy, which has recently become internationally famous due to its powerful storytelling and harrowing complexity. The "Red Riding" trilogy are three films by three important directors which, put together, explore the shocking truth behind crime and police corruption in Scotland and sheds light on some of England's most bizarre murder cases (including Jack the Ripper). This was a huge project commissioned by Yorkshire's Channel 4 and produced largely by Revolution Studios; it made quite an impact on English viewers, the three films were joined into a 4 hour and a half-long movie in the USA, and is now being released in DVD to critics and audiences' wide acclaim. Intrigued by all the rage, I decided to rent this huge project to watch at home.
The trilogy begins with "1974" directed by Julian Jarrold (in a bold departure from his usual style, like "Brideshead Revisited"). Jarrold, as you may know, is a director who opens up his films in a very slow, meditative pace and methodically gathers up the pace to nerve-shattering intensity. "1974" introduces us to Eddie Dunford (Andrew Garfield) a young investigative reporter working for the Yorkshire news. He's no doubt talented, but is new to the job and, like any excited rookie, is prone to some blunders and is in need of experience. One of his first assignments on the job is to report on the recent death of a ten year-old girl, who was found murdered on a large, abandoned plot of land, dreadfully tortured and featuring a pair of swan wings stitched into her back. Dunford starts investigating and soon finds that this murder may be connected to the murder of two other girls in previous years.
Due to his lack of experience and unduly-channeled zeal, he starts asking very problematic questions and meets opposition from most of his co-workers, including investigation leader Maurice Jobson (David Morrissey). He gets involved in a couple of miscarried interviews and draws attention upon himself...but learns from his mistake. Little by little, he starts putting the pieces together and ends up with a dumbfounding web of police corruption, high-level crime involvement, an unexpected lover (Rebecca Hall) who's linked to his investigation and who seems to be keeping some information from him, and some very powerful enemies including a corporate magnate (Sean Bean), who's presence itself is more than fearful.
Jarrold has really outdone himself. The web is spun with countless twists and intrigues and as the minutes run by, you can't help but be fascinated and scandalized at the kind of events unfolding. The film explores Dunford's character in depth (and Andrew Garfield's performance is pitch-perfect) but far from only being an exercise in character development, the film excels at commenting on the horror of corruption. This is a psychological thriller, and the terror behind the plot lies on how deep this corruption runs; it forces the viewer to accept the fact that we are alone when our safety and protection are involved, and that the police and government are actually the ones behind the atrocious murders we so frequently read about in the papers. Dunford will eventually find himself alone, fighting against (or running from) the highest powers of his country. As intelligent viewers we're tempted to inhabit the story and walk into Dunford's shoes...to extremely frightful conclusions.
The story is excellent. Based on David Peace's renowned crime noir novels, the screenplay by Tony Grisoni is practically flawless. Adrian Johnston's score is (once again) both sublime and haunting, and Rob Hardy's cinematography is some of the best I've seen this year. The acting is very good too (especially Garfield, who day by day shows me he's bound to be one of Hollywood's best one of these days). There are some scenes especially that will be etched into your memory perhaps forever: notice, for instance, the two meetings Dunford has with John Dawson (the character played by Sean Bean), first in his car and then in Dawson's private club. These scenes are the work of an expert and are so flawlessly executed you KNOW they're bound to be dissected and thoroughly analyzed in some film school This is only the beginning of what the trilogy promises to be a revelatory, intelligent work of art. It MAY have some flaws, but they most certainly can be overlooked. I can't wait to see the other two films; "Red Riding" has become my new addiction.
Rating: 3 stars and a half out of 4!
The trilogy begins with "1974" directed by Julian Jarrold (in a bold departure from his usual style, like "Brideshead Revisited"). Jarrold, as you may know, is a director who opens up his films in a very slow, meditative pace and methodically gathers up the pace to nerve-shattering intensity. "1974" introduces us to Eddie Dunford (Andrew Garfield) a young investigative reporter working for the Yorkshire news. He's no doubt talented, but is new to the job and, like any excited rookie, is prone to some blunders and is in need of experience. One of his first assignments on the job is to report on the recent death of a ten year-old girl, who was found murdered on a large, abandoned plot of land, dreadfully tortured and featuring a pair of swan wings stitched into her back. Dunford starts investigating and soon finds that this murder may be connected to the murder of two other girls in previous years.
Due to his lack of experience and unduly-channeled zeal, he starts asking very problematic questions and meets opposition from most of his co-workers, including investigation leader Maurice Jobson (David Morrissey). He gets involved in a couple of miscarried interviews and draws attention upon himself...but learns from his mistake. Little by little, he starts putting the pieces together and ends up with a dumbfounding web of police corruption, high-level crime involvement, an unexpected lover (Rebecca Hall) who's linked to his investigation and who seems to be keeping some information from him, and some very powerful enemies including a corporate magnate (Sean Bean), who's presence itself is more than fearful.
Jarrold has really outdone himself. The web is spun with countless twists and intrigues and as the minutes run by, you can't help but be fascinated and scandalized at the kind of events unfolding. The film explores Dunford's character in depth (and Andrew Garfield's performance is pitch-perfect) but far from only being an exercise in character development, the film excels at commenting on the horror of corruption. This is a psychological thriller, and the terror behind the plot lies on how deep this corruption runs; it forces the viewer to accept the fact that we are alone when our safety and protection are involved, and that the police and government are actually the ones behind the atrocious murders we so frequently read about in the papers. Dunford will eventually find himself alone, fighting against (or running from) the highest powers of his country. As intelligent viewers we're tempted to inhabit the story and walk into Dunford's shoes...to extremely frightful conclusions.
The story is excellent. Based on David Peace's renowned crime noir novels, the screenplay by Tony Grisoni is practically flawless. Adrian Johnston's score is (once again) both sublime and haunting, and Rob Hardy's cinematography is some of the best I've seen this year. The acting is very good too (especially Garfield, who day by day shows me he's bound to be one of Hollywood's best one of these days). There are some scenes especially that will be etched into your memory perhaps forever: notice, for instance, the two meetings Dunford has with John Dawson (the character played by Sean Bean), first in his car and then in Dawson's private club. These scenes are the work of an expert and are so flawlessly executed you KNOW they're bound to be dissected and thoroughly analyzed in some film school This is only the beginning of what the trilogy promises to be a revelatory, intelligent work of art. It MAY have some flaws, but they most certainly can be overlooked. I can't wait to see the other two films; "Red Riding" has become my new addiction.
Rating: 3 stars and a half out of 4!