Dead Man's Shoes
2004
***
Director: Shane Meadows
Cast: Paddy Considine, Toby Kebbell, Gary Stretch, Emily Aston, Neil Bell, Jo Hartley, Seamus O'Neil, Stuart Wolfenden, Paul Sadot, Paul Hurstfield
Shane Meadows' stripped down revenge drama plays out like a modern day Western. An ex-soldier named Richard walks to a town to settle a score with a group of low-lifes who bullied his mentally challenged younger brother. The avenger and the avengees appear to be the only people in this ghost town. The film gets off to a hilarious start as Richard humiliates and intimidates the wrongdoers, but things take a sudden turn when he unleashes his full wrath. Does the hero's gruesome punishment really fit the crime? Meadows seems to ponder this same question. The story is gritty and gripping, but it builds to a climax which feels overdramatic and ponderous.