A Further Gesture (1997)
Dowd, an IRA prisoner in the H-blocks, is gloomily facing his sentence, until he joins a comrade in a risky escape. Dowd begins a new life in New York, but he might as well be in prison again - until he strikes up a friendship with co-worker Tulio and gets to know his close group of Guatemalan exiles.
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Best movie ever!
By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.
The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.
It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.
For fans of Stephen Rea, I recommend seeing this good prison escape movie...I wish this film would be on DVD...its far underrated for an action/drama movie...its an Irish film but really deserved far more coverage here in USA...
I found this to be a very good movie. It is an interesting story. All the actors are good. Stephan Rea is always good as he exemplifies such wonderful sensitivity and gravity in his characterization. Rosana Pastor is one of my favorite actresses after seeing this, so very beautiful in looks as well as spirit.
In "The Crying Game," Neil Jordan and Stephen Rea combined to create a masterful, suspenseful thriller. However, "The Break" fails to reproduce that effect, ultimately resulting in a disappointing film. After an intriguing opening sequence, in which Rea, as an Irish terrorist (surprised?), breaks out of prison, the movie really has nowhere to go. Ronan Bennett's screenplay tries to tell the sympathetic tale of a complex man attempting to go straight. The concept is good, but the movie gets bogged down in a poor relationship and runs into a complete dead end halfway through. Of course, Rea eventually returns to his terrorist techniques, this time to help the woman kill an oppressive Spanish general, or something ridiculous like that.The movie simply doesn't have any firepower in the second half. The audience doesn't care about Rea's character. If you want to see a terrific movie with powerful performances and a fascinating story, check out "The Crying Game." Twice, instead of this once.
Seems when a movie starts with a prison break, the story predictably goes in one of two directions. (1) Our protagonist has a big score already planned, and all the resources are at his fingertips. He's upbeat and optimistic. The air of freedom, albeit temporary, smells good. Or, (2) He looks toward a redemptive arc. Probably he finds a good woman in the most unlikely of places, and strives to go, with her, toward a better end. He will meet with some success, only to find a prohibitive obstacle in his path. I mean we can't let a guy escape from prison and get away clean, can we?In The Break' (USA title) Stephen Rea again does a masterful job of underplaying the character of Sean Dowd, trying option #2 on for size. He breaks out of an Irish prison, then relocates to New York, where he works in an obscure restaurant washing dishes.The story then follows a rather predictable path, with a somewhat surprising ending. Director Roger Dornhelm does a good job keeping the film on track.Overall a solid thriller.