Bad Day for the Cut

A middle-aged farmer dutifully looking after his aged mum is hurled into an urban world of crime and cruelty in this compelling revenge thriller set in post-Troubles Ireland. Like Blue Ruin (2013) and little-known Aussie film The Horseman (2008), the unlikely hero is an ordinary Joe driven to vengeance by a seemingly random murder that demands answers. Bear-like Nigel O'Neill impresses as the shambolic gentle giant who survives as much through luck and the use of kitchen utensils as savvy and smarts, while Susan Lynch oozes steely menace as a vicious virago with special reasons for offing the shotgun-wielding avenger. The cat-and-mouse tension simmers rather than boils, but director Chris Baugh's feature debut delivers emotional punch and some wry humour among the chaotic carnage.