Citadel
High-rise
horror
Shy,
timid Tommy’s (Aneurin Barnard) life falls apart when his heavily pregnant wife is
attacked in the hallway of his decaying apartment block by a gang of hooded,
viciously feral children.
Traumatised by his wife’s death and suffering from agoraphobia, Tommy
struggles to care for his newborn daughter alone, spends his days either hiding
out indoors or attending intensive group therapy sessions designed to rebuild
his confidence and allow him the semblance of a normal life.
Crippled
by his own paralysing fear and still terrorised by the faceless, possibly supernatural,
gang, Tommy’s life is a living hell.
But the gang have plans for him, are seemingly intent on kidnapping his
infant daughter. With the aid of a
vigilante (possibly insane) priest (James Cosmo) who’s convinced the gang are actual monsters and a blind
child (Jake Wilson) who may have special powers, Tommy is forced to venture into the
dark heart of evil and face his fears if he wants to save his baby and himself.
Partially
inspired, apparently, by a violent street attack writer/director Ciaran Foy suffered (though it also
bears more than a passing resemblance to Philip Ridley’s sublime urban horror Heartless), Citadel, with its inner city decay,
cowering underclass and sub-human, goblin-like hoodies preying on pregnant
women and babies, is practically a Daily Mail editorial set to celluloid. Set in a nightmarish, fairytale world
that could be anywhere in the British Isles - think it’s supposed to be
somewhere in Ireland but it’s obviously been shot in Glasgow with mostly
English actors (barring a scenery-chewing James Cosmo) and a Welsh hero - the
lack of a clear sense of place actually aids Citadel, adding to the film’s
sense of desolate isolation and its sense of dislocation.
While
the politics of the film are muddy and feel a little middle class reactionary -
the poor here are another species entirely and things don’t go well for the
nice liberal nurse (Wunmi Mosaku) who thinks all the hoodies need is a
hug - leaving a bad taste in the mouth, Foy certainly knows what he’s doing
visually, building a palpable sense of atmospheric dread, a world of dark
tunnels, sickly green corridors and roaming packs of shadowy, feral
figures. And lets be honest, few
things are scarier than a half-glimpsed figure in the shadows at the end of the
corridor before you.
As
Tommy, Aneurin Barnard is a frustratingly impotent, passive protagonist. Yes, Ciaran, we know getting mugged
isn’t pleasant but you gotta get back up on the horse, son. Could your hero maybe grow a pair at
some point? This isn’t helped by
Barnard, with his mop of black curls and big soulful emo eyes looking like the
kind of pretty hobbit that, if you absolutely had to do time, you’d want as
your cellmate. Cosmo meanwhile, as
the vigilante priest, seems to be channeling a gakked up version of his
character from Braveheart, cracking skulls, chewing the scenery and improvising
explosives like he’s just graduated from the Provisional wing of the Jesuits.
Creepy
and ambiguous, right up until it isn’t, Citadel is a dark, tense little horror
flick that’s undeniably gripping even if all you can think the whole way
through is WHY DIDN’T TOMMY AND HIS WIFE JUST GET THE SAME ELEVATOR AT THE
START? It would’ve saved the poor lad a lot of
heartache and maybe made sense.
David Watson
Directed by:
Written by:
Produced by:
Starring:
Genres:
Drama, Horror,
Thriller
Language:
English
Runtime:
1 hour 25
minutes
Certificate:
18
Rating:
UK
Cinema Release Date:
Friday
1st March
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