BULL

 

No one does a gritty revenge thriller quite like us Brits do, the glitz and glam of a Hollywood production stripped back a lot of the time to deliver hard-hitting pieces of filmmaking that can sometimes be quite hard to stomach. Paul Andrew Williams' Bull is a film that takes the idea of revenge and packages it into an incredibly lean but mean film that you'll find hard to take your eyes off.

After a 10-year absence, former gang enforcer Bull (Neil Maskell) returns to his old haunts to find his missing son and seek revenge on those who double crossed him and left him for dead. Painful secrets from the past will soon be revealed and like a man possessed, Bull will stop at nothing to get back at those who must atone for their sins.

Revenge thrillers can fall into a trap of becoming bloated affairs that spend too much time setting things up before remembering they have to actually get to the revenge in hand. Bull certainly avoids that trap, Paul Andrew Williams writing a tightly wound film full of direct to the point dialogue, meaning no excess baggage, and spouts of violence that can most definitely catch you off guard. 

The violence comes in either quick flashes or sustained periods of threat, an encounter between Bull and a foe on a fairground ride involving a blade being one of the more disturbing in the film, Bull's glee at having the upper hand in such a innocent setting sending chills down the spine. The characters are a bit thin as a result of such a tight screenplay but with what Williams was going for here, it makes sense for them to be in all honesty. Bull wants justice and his son back so the film does exactly what it says on the tin.

Neil Maskell leads the film with an unhinged performance as Bull, his appearance not enough to fool you because he is one mean son of a bitch. Maskell masks his anger with a feeling of being everybody's best mate that just makes his violent turns even more jarring. David Hayman is just as nightmarish as Bull's former boss, who just so happens to be his father-in-law, one moment in particular so sinister it makes you sit back and think just how messed up this whole family is.

Ending with a haunting scene that emphasises the idea of Bull being possessed with rage, Bull is a revenge thriller that proves a little bit of British grit goes a long way in making them more memorable.

Verdict: ★★★★