The trilogy of UK crime films Red Riding has received a lot of attention in these parts recently, and for good reason. After winning much love in their native UK the three films - 1974, 1980 and 1983 - which appeared at home as a television miniseries are getting the full theatrical treatment on local shores.
Starting February 5th, IFC Films will be screening all three films on a single ticket in New York City for one week before breaking the block up into three individual features and expanding the release out to LA and points beyond on February 12th.
Now, as they have been building up to their release one odd thing has stood out. Because of the nature of the UK release - where, again, it was treated a single television event spread over three nights - the existing trailer for the trilogy lumped all three films together, making it hard for those coming in cold too know which material belonged to which film. No more! IFC have just released individual trailers for all three films so you can take a look and see how things progress from on to the next. 1974 and 1980 are the ones with recognizable star power - Sean Bean and Paddy Considine, respectively - but all three are very strong. New Yorkers, I strongly recommend you take advantage of the single ticket, whole trilogy screenings.
Starting February 5th, IFC Films will be screening all three films on a single ticket in New York City for one week before breaking the block up into three individual features and expanding the release out to LA and points beyond on February 12th.
Now, as they have been building up to their release one odd thing has stood out. Because of the nature of the UK release - where, again, it was treated a single television event spread over three nights - the existing trailer for the trilogy lumped all three films together, making it hard for those coming in cold too know which material belonged to which film. No more! IFC have just released individual trailers for all three films so you can take a look and see how things progress from on to the next. 1974 and 1980 are the ones with recognizable star power - Sean Bean and Paddy Considine, respectively - but all three are very strong. New Yorkers, I strongly recommend you take advantage of the single ticket, whole trilogy screenings.
Recently watched all three of these films back to back. The first is one of the best pieces of gritty crime noir I've seen in years. The direction, acting, and writing were all top notch. The second is not quite as good as the first, but is still a very well made police drama with a solid performance from one of Britain's best Paddy Considine. Sean Harris is amazingly effective as a creepy corrupt cop. The first two films set you up for what feels like an oncoming soul-crushingly strong final act... and completely blow it. The writing, acting, and direction take a strong 180 and go from being SE7EN good to THE BONE COLLECTOR bad. The final revelations can be guessed from a mile off and the director goes for a jarring, dreamy almost surreal style that takes all of the bite out of the initially edgy and intense first two acts.
Still, all three films are worth watching and I feel that the first film is a very strong entry into the crime thriller genre and is one of my personal favourite noir stories of late. Check 'em out!