Savage (2009)

Savage (2009). 1h 28m

“This shouldu0026#39;ve been Darren Healyu0026#39;s claim to fame; he provides a brilliant performance and a thrilling character transformation as Paul Graynor, a shy photographer who is dragged down an alleyway one night by two men and mugged. They then beat and castrate him for good measure. Paul becomes a recluse, terrified of the world around him. He takes control back; he joins a gym, shaves his head, loses the glasses and takes steroids. He also buys a large hunting knife and carries it around with him. Then he starts to hunt for the men who emasculated him. In essence, Paul turns in to the men who assaulted him, and we are geared up for a shocking, violent climax.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWith the exception of u0026#39;The Commitmentsu0026#39; in the early 90u0026#39;s, Irish cinema was a rare beast up until probably the late 1990s and early 2000s, but in all fairness, we have never produced anything worth shouting about. Healy starred in a film called u0026#39;Crush Proofu0026#39; around that time, a film that shouldu0026#39;ve been a lot better than it was, but he nevertheless was superb in that one. Heu0026#39;s been a fairly low-key actor over the years and personally I think he wouldu0026#39;ve been perfect for a role in RTEu0026#39;s landmark gangland series u0026#39;Love/Hateu0026#39;.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eu0026#39;Savageu0026#39; is quite a violent film, and one that does stay with you. Director Brendan Muldowney makes good use of the grim Dublin streets in creating a bleak and dangerous atmosphere. The script does a good job building up the tension until it explodes. Thereu0026#39;s been nothing else quite like it produced on these shores.”