The humble revenge thriller is a staple of the cinematic schedule, but it’s hard to for any filmmaker or creative team to try and put a brand new spin on a genre that’s been seen and done so many times before. In the case of writer and director Paul Andrew Williams’s Bull, though, the solution is to simply go for broke in terms of gut-punching savagery.
The story is one everyone has witness unfold countless times over across every form of media; Neil Maskell’s hired gun returns to his home down after mysteriously disappearing 10 years previously, and he’s got a score to settle. His boss and father-and-law is at the center of a storm that can only be dispersed by violence, so you may not want to watch this one if you’ve just eaten.
However, a sparkling 93 percent Rotten Tomatoes score signals that it’s a plunge you should definitely take, and it’s one that HBO Max subscribers have opted to indulge. Per FlixPatrol, the widely-acclaimed but criminally little-seen rampage of brutality and bloodlust has become a Top 10 top-viewed title in 20 countries around the world, blowing past its origins as a low budget British gem to become a borderline international sensation.
Distinctly old school in its approach to pretty much everything, Bull offers another reminder that sometimes a classic approach is the best way to tackle what reads as a formulaic narrative on paper, but proves to be anything but in execution. Not for the faint of heart, but definitely worth it.
Published: Dec 1, 2022 04:06 am