A Hungry Director Proving His Worth

Simplicity can be powerful

Hunger follows life in the Maze Prison, Northern Ireland with an interpretation of the highly emotive events surrounding the 1981 IRA Hunger Strike, led by Bobby Sands. With director Steve McQueen’s epic eye for detail, the film provides a timely exploration of what happens when body and mind are pushed to the uttermost limit. The film dramatizes events in the Maze prison in the six weeks prior to Sands death. The films main star is Michael Fassbender but he has good support in Liam Cunningham, Stuart Graham and Liam McMahon.

Using very little dialogue you would think you walked into a silent film, until we are thrown beside Bobby Sands (Michael Fassbender) and the priest (Liam Cunningham), during the 20 minute single shot which has a cascade of dialogue. Though some of it was tough to decipher, a few lines due to the Irish accent, you got the sense that Sands believed 100% in his cause, as he defends his methods of going on the hunger strike.

The only real knock is that the film feels almost like an art project by the director at times, as he uses no dialogue to move the scene, instead using simple graphic visuals and raw imagery. The use of the visual description over the choice of words brings out some fantastic moments but also hurts other parts of the film where the scene is trying to convey a sense of dread or pain but instead lazes around for too long. Hammering the point into the viewer almost makes it feel like the director believes we wouldn’t have understood the message that the image portrayed.

Fassbender goes through a miraculous transition during the film, reminiscent of Christian Bale in the Machinist, going from fully fed and strong, but once the hunger strike begins he’s a skeleton with flesh hanging from its cage. During the filming Fassbender went on a medically supervised crash diet, bringing life to his character as he is dying on screen.

Lacking music, McQueen’s stylistic choice to go without it, making us use our ears as a way to communicate to our brains with what is happening as we listen to every punch thrown, breath drawn and cigarette smoked.

McQueen’s film is grotesque, bold, brutal and stunning. This movie is not for everyone, although I feel everyone should see this film. Cinema like this one is unforgettable.

3 out of 5
Colin Enquist