Michael Caine portrays Harry Brown, an aged honest joe living in a city of chaos, where juveniles are driven into drugs and crime. A new angle of view to the 90s' popular crime genre since Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs(1992) and Danny Boyle's Trainspotting(1996)... Essentially, this movie suggests what can be done with streets when an old chap, who has a medal-of-honor in naval forces, is left alone in his small apartment. It offers an excellent concept through aged Harry Brown's point of view, which is as good as the past summer's animation hit: Up.
It's obvious that the film draws huge benefit from its thematic values. First, Harry Brown's wife passes away due to geriatric causes. Then, his close friend and neighbour Leonard Atwoll gets killed by rounder juveniles at a night time. Whilst having a life-time crisis, police come to his door for investigation of Atwoll's murdering. Under a confusion of fear, anger and despair; all of a sudden he finds himself running after the vengeance of his friend Atwoll. Keeping track of the street gangs, he lays a trap to show up as a businessman trading guns with them. Since it's Michael Caine as we know him, he is an expert at fooling people with detracting their attention; so by courtesy of his timing skills and luck, he dishes those young criminals one by one.
Above all, Daniel Barber as a director turns this such a run-of-the-mill plot into a great suspense/thriller story. He tries to prove that Harry Brown's first murder was unwillingly just an accident but his last was a psychopathic mincing! Same idea here as the way Brown removing the traces behind him, starts with cleaning and collecting garbage, then turns out to setting fire and sabotaging locations. Besides, characterization is at its best. The criminals were so factual. As an important technical detail the sounds have been captured marvellously (with the echoes of fired bullets being heard behind windows), and this is what makes a crime movie makes sense.
Crime/suspense/thriller genre is getting better and better year after year. While we still see a lot of underdeveloped action and shallow crime movies all around, it's obvious that Harry Brown is noteworthy and a must see for the genre followers.
It's obvious that the film draws huge benefit from its thematic values. First, Harry Brown's wife passes away due to geriatric causes. Then, his close friend and neighbour Leonard Atwoll gets killed by rounder juveniles at a night time. Whilst having a life-time crisis, police come to his door for investigation of Atwoll's murdering. Under a confusion of fear, anger and despair; all of a sudden he finds himself running after the vengeance of his friend Atwoll. Keeping track of the street gangs, he lays a trap to show up as a businessman trading guns with them. Since it's Michael Caine as we know him, he is an expert at fooling people with detracting their attention; so by courtesy of his timing skills and luck, he dishes those young criminals one by one.
Above all, Daniel Barber as a director turns this such a run-of-the-mill plot into a great suspense/thriller story. He tries to prove that Harry Brown's first murder was unwillingly just an accident but his last was a psychopathic mincing! Same idea here as the way Brown removing the traces behind him, starts with cleaning and collecting garbage, then turns out to setting fire and sabotaging locations. Besides, characterization is at its best. The criminals were so factual. As an important technical detail the sounds have been captured marvellously (with the echoes of fired bullets being heard behind windows), and this is what makes a crime movie makes sense.
Crime/suspense/thriller genre is getting better and better year after year. While we still see a lot of underdeveloped action and shallow crime movies all around, it's obvious that Harry Brown is noteworthy and a must see for the genre followers.