Hailed as the most important Irish film of the century, I had high expectations before seeing this flick. I knew nothing of the plot except from the title. This Richard guy did something and I aim to find out what it is.
First, who is Richard? Richard Karlsen is the town's golden-boy rugby player. Charismatic, friendly, and at the top of his game, Richard is on his way to success as most people would assume once he leaves highschool for university. It was a typical summertime transition for the seniors and Richard is making sure he is having the time of his life. Coming from an upper middle class family, Richard is not at all what you expect from kids having lived under this environment. He wasn't stereotypically the spoiled kid living off of his parent's beach house. Although he is fun loving just like most people his age, he wasn't portrayed as the evil rich dude of the story. In fact, he's just another regular kid of the block who'll soon leave for university. All is going well one summer until this mistake.
So, what did Richard do? As the screenplay is loosely based on the novel Bad Day in Black Rock, the story revolves around an assault that led to the death of a teen. The first half of the film shows Richard and his friends simply hanging out and meeting new people. At this point, Richard meets Lara who is still involved with her ex Connor. While Richard successfully charms Lara into a relationship, it is still evident how she maintains close contact with her ex. This spells trouble as our lead slowly shows us his insecurity and jealousy despite having his social status. During a drunken brawl, the unexpected happened and now Richard has to face this sudden flip in his life.
The film portrays how an incidence of uncontrolled anger suddenly changes you into a person you never thought you would be and its repercussions. While it was an accident, Richard knows for himself that he is the cause and now he has to face life with guilt. The second half of the film shows how the simple incident has changed the lives of all the characters in the community. It also puts focus on how the lead copes with this event.
So, how did what Richard do affect people's lives? While the event brought out the worst in him, it certainly brought more pain on people around him.
The best thing I loved about the treatment of the flick is the use of silence. It gave way for the actors to express their emotions through actions and subtle changes in their gestures. This is where Jack Reynor excelled in. While many may complain about how the story never got the resolution most people would expect from it, it shows how the experience changed Richard's life. And I think, that's enough to show how we do not really live in a just world. Great work from director Lenny Abrahamson in using tight shots to focus on the character's emotions.
What Richard Did is an exploration of character enclosed within a tight knit community and a look into how a single mistake can change our lives forever.
writelikesundance.wordpress.com
First, who is Richard? Richard Karlsen is the town's golden-boy rugby player. Charismatic, friendly, and at the top of his game, Richard is on his way to success as most people would assume once he leaves highschool for university. It was a typical summertime transition for the seniors and Richard is making sure he is having the time of his life. Coming from an upper middle class family, Richard is not at all what you expect from kids having lived under this environment. He wasn't stereotypically the spoiled kid living off of his parent's beach house. Although he is fun loving just like most people his age, he wasn't portrayed as the evil rich dude of the story. In fact, he's just another regular kid of the block who'll soon leave for university. All is going well one summer until this mistake.
So, what did Richard do? As the screenplay is loosely based on the novel Bad Day in Black Rock, the story revolves around an assault that led to the death of a teen. The first half of the film shows Richard and his friends simply hanging out and meeting new people. At this point, Richard meets Lara who is still involved with her ex Connor. While Richard successfully charms Lara into a relationship, it is still evident how she maintains close contact with her ex. This spells trouble as our lead slowly shows us his insecurity and jealousy despite having his social status. During a drunken brawl, the unexpected happened and now Richard has to face this sudden flip in his life.
The film portrays how an incidence of uncontrolled anger suddenly changes you into a person you never thought you would be and its repercussions. While it was an accident, Richard knows for himself that he is the cause and now he has to face life with guilt. The second half of the film shows how the simple incident has changed the lives of all the characters in the community. It also puts focus on how the lead copes with this event.
So, how did what Richard do affect people's lives? While the event brought out the worst in him, it certainly brought more pain on people around him.
The best thing I loved about the treatment of the flick is the use of silence. It gave way for the actors to express their emotions through actions and subtle changes in their gestures. This is where Jack Reynor excelled in. While many may complain about how the story never got the resolution most people would expect from it, it shows how the experience changed Richard's life. And I think, that's enough to show how we do not really live in a just world. Great work from director Lenny Abrahamson in using tight shots to focus on the character's emotions.
What Richard Did is an exploration of character enclosed within a tight knit community and a look into how a single mistake can change our lives forever.
writelikesundance.wordpress.com