Man Down ** (2015, Shia LaBeouf, Jai Courtney, Gary Oldman, Kate Mara) – Movie Review

Shia LaBeouf gives an intense, smouldering, convincing and classy star turn as disturbed US Marine Gabriel Drummer, who returns home from Afghanistan to be interrogated by Counselor Peyton (Gary Oldman).

Something has happened to his son and wife, and his best friend and Marine buddy Devin Roberts (Jai Courtney), and in flashbacks we are going to join Counselor Peyton in trying to find out exactly what.

Apparently searching for Gabriel’s estranged son and wife (Kate Mara), Gabriel and Devin intercept a man carrying vital information about them.

Co-writer/ director Dito Montiel turns in a very striking-looking and commendably thoughtful and intelligent, well-meaning film. But somehow it is very dull as drama, and very static and undynamic, with little or no action to keep audiences involved. Plus, it is all quite grim and depressing, quite a bit of a downer.

But LaBeouf is a revelation again, like he was in American Honey (2016), and the film is almost worth seeing just for him. It bodes well for this troubled actor’s long-term future.

Kate Mara and Jai Courtney are wasted; Gary Oldman isn’t particularly good. Also in the cast are Tory Kittles as Sergeant Miller, Clifton Collins Jr as Charles and Charlie Shotwell as Johnathan Drummer.

Adam G Simon writes the original story and is Co-writer on the screenplay, but there is a much better, more ambitious screenplay to carve out of this material.

It was premiered at the Venice Film Festival on 6 September 2015 but not released in the US till 2 December 2016 and the UK till 27 March 2017.

The film was shot in 28 days.

LaBeouf also worked on Montiel’s autobiographical film A Guide To Recognizing Your Saints (2006).

It sold one ticket on its opening day in the UK, opening in one cinema in Burnley, Lancashire, and showing once a day. Two more people bought tickets in the days to follow.

© Derek Winnert 2017 Movie Review

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