Dead Man Down - 5Spike

(Image credit: John Baer)

The plot and characters of this pulpy revenge thriller are pure B-movie stuff, but stars Colin Farrell and Noomi Rapace lend the film real class

The plot and characters of this pulpy revenge thriller are pure B-movie stuff, but stars Colin Farrell and Noomi Rapace lend the film real class.

Farrell has infiltrated the gang of a New York mobster (Terrence Howard) in order to avenge the killing of his wife and daughter.

As he sets up his overly elaborate scheme, problems arise when he begins to fall for his scarred neighbour Rapace, who harbours thoughts of vengeance against the drunk-driver who left her disfigured.

Further twists and turns fail to make the story any more plausible, but Farrell and Rapace’s conviction makes us care about their damaged characters' slow-burning romance.

Dominic Cooper (as one of Howard’s henchmen) and Isabelle Huppert (as Rapace's mum) deliver striking supporting performances, while Danish filmmaker Niels Arden Oplev (who directed Rapace in 2009’s original Swedish The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) ensures things go out with a bang with a spectacular final shootout.