Resurrection Man (1998)

Don't listen to the negative reviews

Am i the only one who thinks........Average?

A lot more amusing than I thought it would be.

There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.

In 1975 in Belfast a group of young men, led by Victor Kelly start to get involved in the loyalist violence that goes on around them. However Kelly's enthusiasm and love for violence goes beyond the needs of the terrorist organisations and begins to spiral out of control.This story was written by Eoin McNamee based on his own book. He insists it is fiction but the film makers seem happy to forget that he said this and use it as truth at times. However this isn't as bad as things like Sunday, Bloody Sunday, Name of the Father etc, this doesn't seek to make political statements. What it does want to do is look at the character of Kelly – and as such it is interesting if not informative.The level of violence is too high although it is delivered with style and energy. However this is a problem, the film wants us to look at Kelly as vicious – taking pleasure in the killing, but it judges him as well. It judges him – even though all the violence is stylish and almost glamorised. Double-standards? Have cake and eat it? The cast are good, but Townsend is the standout – he is powerful in the lead role. Nesbitt is as good as he always is – although his character is not really involved in the film and his presence is a little distracting at times. Hannah is good despite the moustache – though mind you, after his embarrassment in the Mummy films, it's good to see him in anything.Overall this is watchable, but it has double standards. It is guilty of enjoying the violence and the life style just as much as Kelly does.

Resurrection Man focuses on sectarian violence in Northern Ireland in the 1970s. Concentrating on what sort of characters are involved in this lifestyle and their relationships, but doesn't really go into much detail why. Which makes the film into a more stereotypical "two gangs battling" film, focusing mainly on the relationships between the members of the protestant gang, and making it all very stylish. This is the film's main flaw, it's feels like you've seen it before, it has been done before and better by others. That said, Resurrection Man has some good performances and a decent soundtrack, but on the whole, unless any of the plot lines are of interest to you personally, you might be better off watching some of the established "classics" of the genre that are fairly well known.

What a cruel, confused film . This could have been the definitive film dealing with the tribal hatred during the Irish troubles , but instead we get an incoherant , rather plotless tale of motiveless murdersI`ve never read the novel RESURRECTION MAN but it`s obvious the screenplay needs to be restructured since it tells us nothing of the reasons why Irishmen kill their fellow Irishmen. What made Victor Kelly this way ? Why is he regarded as a hero ? , and most importantly of all: Why are his gang called "The Resurrection Men " ? These questions are never fully explained Worst of all the film seems to concentrate more on a wife beating Belfast journalist rather than Kelly . If the film had to revolve round him couldn`t he have been an English or American journalist ignorant of the complex situation of 70`s Belfast ? At least then they`d be some expositional context in the film. And on top of this major flaw most of the characters are superflious , they don`t contribute to the plot.I might be missing the point that many terrorists in Ireland (Especially Loyalists ) aren`t intrested in politics or religion but are more intrested in venting blood lust , and to it`s credit the film does in gory detail show the suffering of the victims of violence , but after viewing RESURRECTION MAN the viewer will probably be left feeling that the film ( Like political violence ) is a waste of time.For a detailed and informative study of Lenny Murphy ( Who Victor Kelly is based upon ) try finding Martin Dillon`s book THE SHANKHILL BUTCHERS:A CASE STUDY OF MASS MURDER

Eoin MacNamee's screenplay loses some of the visceral quality so powerfully evoked in his own novel, and the sense of place suffers badly from the movie having been shot entirely outside of Belfast.A heavily fictionalised account of the life of notorious Loyalist murderer Lenny Murphy, the film admirably conveys the arbitrary nature of sectarian violence in Belfast in the 1970's, and the performances are universally excellent. Not for the squeamish, the film reminds us just how far Northern Ireland has had to come on its present peace process.