Perrier's Bounty

This Irish gangster flick centres on the life of petty criminal Michael, who has fallen behind on his debt repayments to Darren Perrier, the undisputed gangland boss in Dublin. Not a man to be crossed, Perrier sends a couple of his hard men around to tell Michael that, unless he pays up, they will break two bones in his body -- and digits don't count. Perrier isn't completely unreasonable and will give Michael the choice of which two bones.

With absolutely no way of being able to legitimately raise the money in such a short period of time, Michael desperately hunts around for the gun he keeps stashed under his bed, only to find that his best friend, Brenda, has nicked it because she's been dumped and is contemplating using it on herself. When the men call around again to 'punish' Michael, they obviously didn't count on Brenda who accidentally shoots one of them dead. To compound matters, Michael's father, has recently arrived in Dublin to reconcile with his estranged son and is just in time to witness this gangland killing.

This strange turn of events has so infuriated Perrier that he places a bounty on their heads and, with Michael thinking he has nothing to lose, Brenda in an extremely emotional state and Jim, Michael's father, thinking he will die the next time he falls asleep, things are going to get very weird, very quickly. If that weren't enough, there is also the small matter of some extremely committed wheelclampers and a gang of men who operate a dog fighting racket and have some extremely ferocious canines with extremely precocious names ready to kill.

I thought that Perrier's Bounty looked terrific from the trailer but experience has taught me to be extremely wary of a film distilled into a two-minute slot as they can often just show the best bits, if not 90% of the entire film, leaving you watch the movie with the distinct feeling that all you are really watching is the trailer with a great deal of filler. Fortunately, this wasn't the case here as there is way more good stuff that was left out of the trailer and the film moves along at a hell of a place for its 84 minute running time.


The film boasts a wealth of acting talent with Cillian Murphy as Michael, Brendan Gleeson as Perrier, Jim Broadbent as Jim and Jodie Whittaker as Brenda. The two English actors have extremely creditable Irish accents and Jim Broadbent really looks the part with a growth of thick, white stubble and a fantastic outfit that makes him look like a tramp. Brendan Gleeson has that perfect build that makes him a realistic on-screen hard man, just as it did in another gangster comedy film, In Bruges. Here, he also lets the obscenities fly and really comes across as a bloke you wouldn't want to cross.

Perrier's Bounty moves at a frenetic pace, with events unfolding all the time and the smallest things have major repercussions later on in the narrative. It is also written with a real sense of verve, wit and energy and there is scarcely a dull moment. The actors really must have loved making this as they are given terrific lines to say and are put in situations that would rarely, if ever, occur again in their careers. I had a whale of a time watching the film as it is laced with black humour and some great lines that are beautifully delivered by the entire cast. There is also fascinating narration by Gabriel Byrne, playing the Grim Reaper, someone who has a keen interest in events in Ireland's capital and who will be kept very busy.


THE DISC

Extra Features
Not a great deal, only two sets of interviews which last about six minutes each, one with Cillian Murphy and Brendan Gleeson and the other with Jim Broadbent and Jodie Whittaker who are all asked practically the same questions such as 'describe your character', 'how did you become involved in the film' and 'what do you think of its reception'. This is typical EPK material and is really just a 'puff piece" used to fill a space on the disc under the Special Features heading as it really would look a little bare bones with just a trailer.

The Picture
A very good and crisp transfer which manages to maintain the level of detail and clarity in the darker scenes, of which there are many, and, with a muted palette, conveys the bleak situations and grim characters extremely well. There aren't a great many action sequences, just scenes where a car will move at speed or come screeching around a corner and there isn't the slightest hint of motion blurring or anything else to detract from your enjoyment.


The Sound
The Dolby Digital 5.1 surround soundtrack is very good and clear and does a great job with the dialogue which could get lost quite easily when you have music playing and overlapping dialogue. Most of the sound comes through the centre channel and the rear surrounds are used infrequently although, when the narrator speaks, his voice is much louder than anyone else's and brings the front surrounds into play.

The film has a terrific soundtrack with a great score by David Holmes which varies from pumping dance music to more understated music to heighten emotions.


Final Thoughts
Whilst this isn't the finest comedy/thriller you will ever see, it is extremely entertaining with great performances by the entire cast, a wonderful script by Mark O'Rowe and assured direction by Ian Fitzgibbon. In a sense, this is fairly disposable and will work perfectly for a night in with a meal in front of the television but I imagine it will have a longevity to it that will ensure the film stands up to repeated viewings.

It is a shame that the extra features are so short and insubstantial as I imagine that a commentary track would be interesting and enjoyable. That being said, this is a title to put on your rental list and I imagine that the Blu-ray (which wasn't available for review) will have even better picture and sound quality.