Having explored the hardscrabble existence of inner-city junkies in the brilliantly funny Adam & Paul, and the lonely life of a rural outsider in the slow-burning drama Garage, director Lenny Abrahamson turns his eye to Celtic Tiger cubs in South County Dublin.
Loosely based on Kevin Power’s novel Bad Day In Blackrock – a fictionalised account of the Club Annabel killing of 2000 – Abrahamson’s film is not only a quietly devastating exploration of guilt and entitlement. It is a telling tale of our times.
Jack Reynor plays the eponymous Richard, a charismatic young rugby player able to charm classmates, teachers and his intelligent girlfriend Lara (Roisin Murphy).
As with all of Abrahamson’s work, the story is driven by men. This fits well with the machismo-fuelled culture of affluent rugby schools. The young women, meanwhile, have learned to be pretty, easy-going and obedient trophies. The dark side of this alpha male competitiveness, entitlement and group-think is revealed when tragedy strikes and omertà sets in.
The second act sees Richard wrestle with his conscience as What Richard Did becomes an intriguing and psychologically complex morality play, with young Reynor beautifully transforming from a confident young man into a conflicted, terrified mess.
A scene where Richard erupts into helpless, unheard screams is so raw and primal that it’s devastating to watch, and compensates for the actor’s slight struggle in a vital scene between Richard and his father.
Then again, any actor would struggle to equal Lars Mikkelson, stunning as a man heartbroken and repelled by his son’s actions – but determined to protect him.
Abrahamson never judges his characters, he merely tells their tale. The result is a stunning and humanistic tragedy.