“I don’t think violence is the work of hateful men, sometimes it’s just the way a fellow makes sense of his world,” says Cosmo Jarvis’ former boxing-champ-turned-enforcer for the drug dealing Dever family. He’s a man whose life has been defined by violence in one form or another and he’s at something of a crossroads, torn between his love for his five-year-old son and the obligation he feels to the Devers.
Calm With Horses is a confident, brutal, and poignant feature debut from Brit director Nick Rowland. It’s technically impressive, boasting extraordinary performances, although as a crime thriller it’s less thrilling and more depressing as the inexorable path of the narrative unfolds.
After a tragedy in the ring, Douglas “Arm” Armstrong (Jarvis) is taken in by the Devers, a grubby criminal clan headed up by the menacing Paudi (Ned Dennehy) and the fractionally more refined Hector (David Wilmot). Arm lives with them and is constantly lectured about loyalty and family though it’s quite clear he’s not actually treated as blood. Instead Arm is “handled” by the wiry, volatile Dympna (Barry Keoghan). Keoghan is terrific and one of the most exciting young actors around and his manipulative, awful Dympna channels Trainspotting’s Begbie as he randomly starts fights for Arm to deal with and coerces him with alcohol and cocaine. Arm is the family’s attack dog – we see him doling out brutal punishment with professional polish to a family friend who assaulted Hector’s teenage niece. But when the retribution isn’t deemed sufficient a revenge tale is put into motion which forces Arm to confront his lifetime of violence and living by the sword.
The title refers to Arm’s five-year-old son Jack (Kiljan Moroney) who he has with former partner Ursula (Niamh Algar) who the Devers roundly reject. Jack is austic and finds peace through riding horses, supervised by the gentle Rob (Anthony Welsh) and it’s these moments of quiet that are some of the few reprieves in a story heavy with impending doom.
