Written and directed by Chris Andrews, co-written by Jonathan Hourigan, an Irish shepherding family thrust into battle on several fronts: internal strife, hostility within the family, rivalry with another farmer. Paternalism, heritage, and the generational trauma cycle through the cultural prism of Ireland. Starring: Christopher Abbott, Barry Keoghan, Colm Meaney, Nora-Jane Noone, Paul Ready, Aaron Heffernan and Susan Lynch.
If you saw the combination of Christopher Abbott and Barry Keoghan, and your immediate reaction was ‘this is going to be intense’, you’re absolutely right. It’s a perfect example of a dramatic story that has such a perfect darkness and intensity to it that it becomes a thriller, which is an excellent choice from Chris Andrews and Jonathan Hourigan. Especially because these filmmakers, unlike so many others, do not use violence as a crutch. It certainly has a part to play in this story but it’s predominantly off-screen.
That choice is a good signifier of many of the things that Andrews does well with Bring Them Down. He creates an atmosphere which balances everyday hardships and depression with trauma and conflict, while holding onto a pensive, almost mysterious feel, rather than becoming entirely dour. In the same way, it’s heavy viewing but never overwhelming so, Andrews clearly knew where the line one was and approaches it but doesn’t cross it.
It’s exactly the same case with the story, it has a great balance of family drama, ghosts of the past and fuming hostilities. None of them completely take over, allowing it to weave all these different topics and emotions together to make for one very tense tale. Something that’s highly complimented by the score, from Hannah Peel, which is aggressive in the best of ways. Peel makes its presence known and gives critical moments that extra punch.
Something that’s undoubtedly in turn complimented by the excellent cinematography from Nick Cooke. All the deep, rich colours that these landscapes naturally have are taken advantage of by Cooke to elevate the complex emotions at work. He manages to perfectly match the tones and atmosphere set by Andrews.
All of that goodness is before you even dive into the performances which were never going to disappoint when you’ve got talent like Keoghan, Abbott, Noone and Meaney. Bring Them Down is another example of what Christopher Abbott does best, creating complicated, broken characters. There is just so much of Michael that’s irreparably damaged, which is what makes him fascinating. He can be such a patient, caring man but he’s also got a huge darkness inside of him, something that makes him unpredictable.
There are reflections of that in Barry Keoghan’s Jack but it’s in its infancy, mixed with a little bit of naivety, a lot of youth and portraying the generational impact. He’s a surprisingly sweet kid but is faced with a lot of negative influences, pushing him down roads, he doesn’t want to travel. There’s a lot of loyalty in him, which is nicely reflected in Nora-Jane Noone’s Caroline.
She adds a real sense of generosity and kindness into the mix which helps Bring Them Down maintain its excellent balance. Noone is an undoubtedly underrated actress, so if you do enjoy this, it’s highly recommended that you go and watch Wildfire where she gives a powerhouse performance alongside the late Nika McGuigan.
Bring Them Down is an intense and gripping exploration of trauma, bringing together a story of family history and conflict with a surprisingly dark thriller. With the exception of a jarring cut to the timeline of the story, it’s very well put together. The cinematography is stunning, the score is brilliant, the direction is filled to the brim with tension in a thoughtful and balanced manner. The performances are unsurprisingly top notch, putting Christopher Abbott and Barry Keoghan together was always going to be a recipe for success.
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