[Photo Provided by Studio Canal]

Film Review: Free Fire

10:26 April 24, 2017
By: Fritz Esker

Set in the late 70s in Boston, director Ben Wheatley’s Free Fire aims for a Tarantino-esque mix of violence and humor. It sometimes succeeds.

The story centers on an arms deal at an abandoned warehouse. The players include IRA members (led by Cillian Murphy), an intermediary (Brie Larson), and gunrunners (led by Armie Hammer and Sharlto Copley). Two of the opposing sides’ lackeys have a personal dispute that leads to fighting that leads to gunfire. Soon everyone’s been winged and is looking for a way to leave with the money.

There’s not much more to it than that. After the first act, it’s a protracted shootout in a single location. Wheatley has the right idea in limiting this to 90 minutes, but it still feels like the story needed to throw another curve ball because it grows repetitive after an hour. There’s nothing wrong with the performances, but the actors are given very little to play with in terms of characterizations. There’s little to define them and, therefore, little reason to be invested in their fates. That said, the battles are well-staged and the film’s gallows humor scores some laughs.


**1/2 stars (out of four)

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