Drawing riveting performances from Peter Mullan and Olivia Colman, actor Paddy Considine makes a directorial debut that will reward any viewer willing to share his unblinking gaze into the hearts of two violently damaged protagonists.
A dazzlingly intense film that is tough to watch but completely memorable and challenging.
Screened as part of NZIFF 2011
Tyrannosaur 2011
Joseph (Mullan) is a cynical, seething mess of anger and drink, drawn, for reasons we can only dread, to Hannah (Colman). A nun-like thrift-shop worker, she deflects his abusive overtures with kindness. He will not have a bar of her charity, but, while events transpire which confirm his brutal view of the world, he learns that there’s more to Hannah’s grasp on faith and hope than mindless piety. — BG
“What’s surprising is how warm Tyrannosaur feels despite its bleakness; even a mid-film funeral scene is surprisingly full of life. Both Mullan and Eddie Marsan are expectedly stellar, but it’s Colman, a performer better known for TV comedies, who gives the film its deeply moving soul.” — Keith Uhlich, Time Out NY