sesht
In spite of the title of the flick turning out to be a spoiler of sorts, I did not immediately 'get' the final twist for a bit. Not a fan of unwanted twist endings, but this one hit me like a sledgehammer of sorts. A decent prologue, followed by meaty cloaks-and-daggers turns by both the IRA and the MI5, that does not reveal initially about the layers-with-layers of relationships that are shrouded in the everyday, mundane activity of our leads.I have to confess, though, that in spite of the main leads being Owen and Riseborough, it did take me some time to 'buy into' the main premise of the movie, before it became gripping for me, quite a while at that, around 50 minutes of its runtime at least, all the while I was thinking that this was one movie where the trailer seemed more exciting than the main product, and that James 'Man on wire' Marsh was vastly overrated. There were a few sequences that made me feel that they were done for effect (hey, lookee here, I've got a budget to play with) and nothing else, but the power of hindsight kinda eliminated that thought, ultimately. Well, glad to say, I was wrong by miles, but one needs to get into the movie in order to appreciate it, and stay with it all the way.Early roles for Aidan Gellen (Game of thrones, Blitz, Calvary...) and Domhnall Gleeson (About time, Ex Machina, Star Wars: the force awakens..), with a few sequences with Gillian Anderson (The X Files, who looks absolutely gorgeous, at her age, when this filmed) make this a fine ensemble-piece, and one of the best things, I have to say, was probably a combination of both the narrative style itself, along with the editing, with almost nothing looking/sounding out of place in the proceedings. One of the best use of scores in the trailer however, disappointingly, does not make its presence felt in the main feature (as good as it is, it has been used in other flicks, I'm sure, though the titles escape me for now). Not to be missed, this one's an underrated/under-seen little gem.
justincward
Clive Owen is an MI5 stooge who instantly turns a Belfast bomb-dropper-offer woman into an informer, in spite of saying, 'This is going to take some time'. And yes, we get it: Belfast in the troubles (which aren't over btw) is as bleak as it gets. Those IRA guys just want everyone to be as miserable as they are, it seems.Now, introduce hundreds of indistinguishable miserable characters without names or any particular reason to exist other than it's a 'political' film, yeah? A few vignettes of IRA funerals and suchlike, just to lighten the mood. Forget to show the heroine for half an hour, and focus on Clive Owen's double chin.Fast forward ninety minutes. Still awake? Suddenly, Clive and his informer kiss. Fast forward thirty more minutes. then she arranges for his car to be booby trapped even though he offered to elope with her, I think. Because her mother's an informer too, and she has to die.You see, those IRA types just can't be anything but miserable.Who wrote this tripe? Is that the Tom Bradby who was ITV's political editor? Stick to news, Tom. If it wasn't you, sorry.
Liam Blackburn
After reading some of the reviews here I can see why some didn't like this movie and how it has a 6/10 rating. I think it should be a 7 for sure, and this movie can be really misinterpreted. People who like action bombing crash type movies will not be happy with this since it is not about that. It is a very deep moving film about the Troubles and all the problems in North Ireland. If you know about that history, this movie will resonate with you and you will feel the intensity, the dilemmas facing the characters, the anger, the resentment, the incredulity, that goes with the Troubles. Consider that even today, people are not allowed to have parades in certain parts of North I because riots will break out, it's A PARADE! There is serious animosity between peoples in North I and even South and it is stupid to pretend different. That's why this movie is a real good choice to show anyone young who needs to know their history. Clive Owen did a respectable job, same as most of his roles, that stone faced glare, not giving away much emotion, it works for him. But Andrea Risboraough, who I had only seen in Oblivion was REALLY good. Some other reviewers picked this up too, and they're bang on. I hated looking at her face in Oblivion, that blank pasty cold blue eyed stare ( which was perfect for that role), but in this one it's almost like she has the same stare but there is so much rage and deep sorrow simmering just below the surface. As far as other reviewers complaining that they couldn't understand the Irish accents...maybe you need subtitles, it is hard to understand if you are not used to hearing.
samkan
There have been more than a few films about the Irish "Troubles" ranging from from the idealistic ("The Hunger") to the melodramatic ("In the Name of the Father") to the tragic ("Sunday Bloody Sunday") and the historic ("Michael Collins"). But "Shadow Dancer" shines as a legitimate suspense thriller built upon convincingly realistic circumstances. There's an intro giving us character development, motive, etc., that captivates but in hindsight might be better left out. There's also a brief -and most surprising- romantic interlude that at first seems an unneeded diversion but actually has some impact on the end product. But what's intriguing about "Shadow Dancer" is the gritty, mundane realism of overcast Northern Ireland and depressing Belfast lives. The film is thankfully devoid of emotional screes on British repression, Irish solidarity, sacrifice and loss. Plot knots are skillfully tied. Just a taunt, believable thriller with some minor action sequences made without pomp and upon a modest budget. Would've been plenty more satisfied paying $20 for ticket and popcorn for "Shadow Dancer" than for the mega-plex junk my kids drag me to. Andrea Riseborough is easy on the eyes too.
AD
