Review: Route Irish

In spite of occasionally veering off the path (as with 2009′s comedy, Looking for Eric), Ken Loach pretty much remains the reigning emperor of films that feel like the emotional equivalent of a punch in the gut. It seems unsurprising that he’d eventually find his way around to creating a uniquely Loachian take on the Iraq war, too.

Route Irish centres on Fergus (Mark Womack), a silent, lonely ex soldier who’s recently completed a tour in Iraq. When one of his best friends, Frankie (John Bishop) is killed on duty, Fergus can’t handle it. He knows he was the one who convinced Frankie that going to Iraq was a lucrative gig, and he’s wracked with guilt. Add to that the fact that Frankie’s left behind a girl, Rachel (Andrea Lowe) who Fergus was obviously just as in love with, and you’ve got the makings of a gut-wrenching drama already.

Instead, Loach creates a tension filled thriller in which Fergus tries to find out what really happened to Frankie, armed with nothing but an Iraqi cell phone which was sent to him by Frankie before his death. Frankie was killed on Route Irish, the road from the Green Zone to the Baghdad airport which has been called one of the most dangerous roads in the world. In spite of the danger, Fergus smells something fishy, and cannot accept Frankie’s death as just another tragic wartime accident.

As Fergus delves deeper into the mess of war to try to find out why his friend really died, Rachel tries to gently coax him back into the world of the living. It’s gritty, it’s harsh, it’s a serious downer, and it’s one of the best thrillers I’ve seen in a long while.

Loach maintains the intimate, kitchen-sink-ish feel that makes his films so affecting. Every character’s pain feels very real, and the brilliant depiction of a tortured man on the edge by Womak (who looks a bit like a scrappier Jason Statham with a much broader acting range) really adds to the overall impact.

Perhaps not the best, or the most sob-inducing of his films, but definitely a solid mystery with a satisfying if unsurprisingly bleak end.

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