NYFF Report: British Star Jack O'Connell Gets His Irish Up in the Taut Action-Thriller ''71'
Talk about bringing the pain; rising British star Jack O’Connell has been experiencing a world of hurt this year. The bruises started piling up with his ferocious turn as a young jailbird in the acclaimed British prison drama Starred Up. Later this year, on Christmas Day, he’ll be battered and bloodied in the Angelina Jolie-directed Oscar hopeful Unbroken, in which he plays real-life Olympic track star–turned–WWII fighter pilot Louis Zamperini, who survived an ocean crash-landing, only to endure a stint in a Japanese POW camp. And right now, in screenings at the NYFF, he can be seen getting knocked around in the thriller '71, as a British soldier trapped in a hostile Belfast neighborhood during the height of Ireland’s ’70s-era Troubles. What does a handsome English guy have to do to get cast in a pain-free romantic comedy these days, anyway?
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At least O’Connell can take comfort in knowing that his suffering has paid off in some great performances. He’s a live-wire presence in Starred Up, moving like a cornered predator, just waiting for his moment to lash out. His star turn in '71 might be in a lower-key register, but it’s no less gripping; unlike his Starred Up character, who was essentially raised inside the prison system, Pvt. Gary Hook is something of a newbie and clearly out of his depth. Separated from his squad during a clash with protestors, Gary narrowly escapes an execution-style killing at the hands of IRA soldiers and—in a superb set-piece on par with any Hollywood blockbuster—flees through the narrow, winding Belfast back alleys, uncertain where he’s going and how he’ll make it back to safety.
Related: Watch a Quick History of the New York Film Festival
The Troubles have served as a backdrop to some terrific movies, among them Jim Sheridan’s In the Name of the Father (1993) and Paul Greengrass’ Bloody Sunday (2002). '71 director Yann Demange is less interested in the larger political and social issues confronting Ireland at the time than either of those filmmakers, though. This is a straightforward ticking-clock thriller, designed to keep the audiences perched at the edge of their seats for 90 minutes. The movie is so tensely plotted and kinetically cut that even a few third-act action movie clichés (like Roger Ebert’s old nemesis, the Talking Killer) can’t short-circuit its narrative engine. Really, though, the key to '71's success is appealing O'Connell's everyman presence, and his John McClane-like ability to take a licking and keep on ticking. What's Gaelic for “Yippee-ki-yay, mother—-er”?
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Photo credit: Courtesy of Toronto Film Festival
