Having missed this in its initial run, I managed to catch it recently, during its BAFTA tour re-release. It's received a lot of acclaim, including a BAFTA for its debut director, actor Paddy Considine (a man coincidentally born on the same day as me).
But it's the performances, in particular, Olivia Colman, that have received the most attention. And she deserves all the praise in the world- tender, caring, downtrodden, and yet forceful when required. She is absolutely heart-breaking.
Peter Mullan is just as fantastic (as usual), playing a terrifying brutal streak with a horrifying believability, whilst keeping the character relatively sympathetic and relatable. Imagine Victor Meldrew with a violent streak.
A worthy mention also to Eddie Marsan, a now-familiar welcome presence in any movie, and whilst his character is as brutal and tender as Mullan's, it's in a completely different, yet no less believable way.
As for the plot, it's one of those where you think you know where it's going, but doesn't really get there. You suspect it's heading somewhere bad, but there are opportunities for redemption- reminding me of This Is England '86. Unfortunately, once the film reveals its final, most shocking secret, it quite possibly should have ended there. Instead, it continues, rather ambiguously, only hinting at what came next regarding the leads' relationship. Nothing wrong with that per se, but I felt it was unsatisfying as and end to the rather brilliant, if harrowing journey on which we'd been taken.
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