It's not often a sudden bout of randiness saves your life. In A Good Woman Is Hard To Find that very thing sets up a Chekov's gun moment that pays off cleverly later in the film. Just one of many well written instances that make this Belfast set thriller one to watch.
Sarah's (Sarah Bolger) been having a tough time of it. Her husband was murdered and the PSNI don't seem to care why it happened or who did it. That combined with her traumatised young son and his inability to communicate since the tragedy is pushing her to her wit's end. One night a thief called Tito (Andrew Simpson) barges his way into her apartment and forces her to store the drugs he's just stolen from local kingpin Leo (Edward Hogg). What happens next is the straw that breaks the camel's back.
No matter what age you are the idea of your parent being a sexual being is one that will shock you. A conversation about that & an appalled utterance of "Jesus Mammy!" is one of the very few times you'll raise a smile during this film. It's a tiny bit of badly needed levity and by the time it arrives you'll have earned it because A Good Woman Is Hard To Find is tough going. It's a shockingly violent film in places as we watch Sarah subjected to a litany of hardship from the men around her, from sleazy dickhead shop workers to indifferent police to the scum of the earth, all while she's trying to hold herself and her family together. She's a woman on the verge of collapse but by the time the end credits roll she's had a hell of an arc. An arc that in lesser hands would have felt totally over the top.
Sarah Bolger is riveting in the lead. Her desperation is palpable. Her love for her children is obvious. She'll do anything for them. The opening flash forward braces us for something terrible in her future and the Sarah we meet first seems incapable of dealing with what's coming but by the time it's playing out in front of us in all it's gory glory it's absolutely believable that this is the course of action she should have taken. The visceral nature of the film might be a bit much for some Bolger's performance will keep you glued to the screen while a smartly written and intelligent script from Ronan Blaney will bring a wry grin to your face when you realise late in the movie how everything will play out. A kinda silly coincidence halfway through the film feels like an easy way to move the story forward but when it helps build a film to a climax this satisfying it's an easy thing to forgive.
If you like your thrillers tense as hell & laced with grammar lessons as well as a liberal splash of blood you'll enjoy this. It's low budget origins are undeniable but it's given a nice sheen from stylish direction from Abner Pastoll who directed the interesting Road Games a few years back. A Belfast set film made (almost) without reference to the troubles is always welcome too. More of this please.
A Good Woman Is Hard To Find is available to stream online now. It's worth your time.
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