A drama, based on the a story, in which a British boxer serves time in a Thai prison.
Joe Cole stuns in Jean-Stéphane Sauvaire's gruelling biopic set in a Thai prison.
David Ungaro's invigorating cinematography and the bruising sound design ensure every moment feels painfully authentic.
For all the flying fists and the hero’s nightmarish predicament, the notions of redemption examined here are plenty deep. Add that to the bone-crunchingly effective technique and flawless lead performance, and you have yourself something very rare: a testosterone-driven narrative that’s about nurturing, rather than destruction. And one that achieves a bleeding-knuckled profundity.
Joe Cole plays a British boxer fighting for survival among the inmates of a Bangkok hellhole in this grisly, visceral and often unwatchably brutal biopic.
Prison dramas don’t come any more bruising than real-life story A Prayer Before Dawn.
A way-above-average genre movie with a star-making performance of animal energy from Joe Cole.
A fact-based story of an English drug addict surviving jail in Thailand through boxing is an intense assault on the senses.
Glasgow Film Theatre, Glasgow from Friday July 20, 2018, until Thursday July 26, 2018. More info: http://www.glasgowfilm.org/theatre/