Us and Them, 2017.
Directed by Joe Martin.
Starring Jack Roth, Tim Bentnick, Sophie Colquhoun, Andrew Tiernan, and Louis Dempsey.
SYNOPSIS:
A young political insurgent plans to wreak revenge on a rich family. In a mess of rage, ideology and youthful zeal, it becomes pretty clear that he doesn’t really know what he’s doing.
Us and Them opens with a scene that we think we’ve seen before. Danny, played with a solemn intensity by Jack Roth, is meeting his girlfriend’s parents for the first time and is squirming under the pressure. It all seems pretty routine, until a few rushed glances, strange comments and panicked gulps start to warp the conversation. Something isn’t quite right, and it is not just the casual awkwardness. Close ups of carved meat, carnivorous teeth and chewed flesh point towards a violence simmering just below the surface, and Danny doesn’t seem able to control it.
The film is a home invasion movie by rights but has an overt political angle that adds moral ambiguity to the genre. Danny is sick to the teeth with inequality and is provoked to drastic action when he overhears a well-to-do couple mouthing off about the poor. They have never experienced the hardships of his life – both come from families with “heritage” and the girlfriend, Phillipa, seems to be particularly indulged by her banker father. Danny wants to lash out at the boyfriend Glenn, but restrains himself so that he can plot something altogether more vicious.
In effect, he wants to revive the spirit of the Situationist International. The plan: hijack Glenn’s visit to Phillipa’s parents by posing as the boyfriend. He wants to show them what real hardship looks like, filming the whole spectacle in order to send a message to other capitalist bullies. But things get complicated when his motivations are tested; nothing is as simple as it seems.
The film boasts a slick visual confidence that draws heavily on the likes of Guy Ritchie and Tarantino. Well-crafted shots of cars on fire, grubby pubs and gold-plated toilets are used to punch home the idea of indulgence and struggle. Elsewhere, an image of a lab rat trying to keep afloat becomes a clever visual cue that is later recalled with shots of Danny in a grimy bath and the banker in a swanky pool. By placing important scenes in water, we are invited to draw comparisons between those who are just about keeping afloat and those that are truly living.
What the film lacks is the sheer intensity of prime Ritchie or Tarantino. The violence, when it comes, is slightly underwhelming, never submitting itself to the full carnality that you were sort of expecting. Instead, the film ends in slight whimper with a few scuffles and stabbings rather than a complete blood bath.
It is also unclear where the film’s own politics lie. Amongst the polemical speeches from both sides no clear message arises, since the rich are mostly caricatures (“I’ve just had this shirt starched”) and poverty is often used as the punchline (“you’re blaming the plight of the working class on PornHub”). Towards the end of the film, a particularly moving speech about the myth of meritocracy is quickly undermined by some impromptu stabbing – reflecting how the film in general does not quite follow through with its political ambitions.
Us and Them shows enough promise to make us excited for what these young filmmakers do next. The ideas, energy and talent are all there, it is just sometimes this film misses the mark.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★
Tom Knight
