Calm With Horses Review

 

Certificate: 15

Running time: 101 minutes

Starring: Cosmo Jarvis, Barry Keoghan, Niamh Algar, Ned Dennehy, Anthony Welsh

Directed by: Nick Rowland

The story: Douglas 'Arm' Armstrong works for the feared Devers clan as an enforcer. Often caught up in violence, Douglas struggles to be a good father to his young son. Stuck between two families, Douglas finds himself tested to the extreme when he is asked to kill for the first time. 

The verdict: This is the debut feature from Nick Rowland and what a debut it is. Set in rural Ireland, Calm With Horses is visually striking and beautifully shot with the wild and sparse location almost a character within itself. The story is told very visually as well with hues of colour expressing either violence or redemption, which are the two key elements of what this film is all about. 

The performances are incredibly engaging in this film and Cosmo Jarvis' central performance is particularly noteworthy. His character is a man of few words and so much of what makes Jarvis' performance so compelling is the physicality of it. Looking at Jarvis' filmography, I don't think that I have seen him in anything else, however his performance in this has certainly encouraged me to look up his previous work. 

Calm With Horses is the kind of film that pulls you into its world and doesn't let you go until the credits start rolling. There is nothing desirable about the world that Douglas inhabits - he lives in a crowded house in a rundown town and is tortured by the life that he lives and the life that he used to have. But there is something strangely beguiling about Calm With Horses. 

Calm With Horses was a film that I had no expectations of and it ended up thoroughly impressing me. A simple narrative is brought to life by fantastic cinematography and performances, and the ending packs an emotional punch. I also really love the title of this film, a title that at first seems slightly odd but that fits the film so perfectly.

The rating: ★★★★ and a half