Dead Man's Shoes (2004)

NETFLIX INSTANT VIEWER HIDDEN GEM #1:

Dead Man's Shoes is a deceptively simple little revenge film. You would be forgiven if, after reading the Netflix plot description, you dismiss it as something you've probably seen before.

In a nutshell: Richard (Paddy Considine), a British soldier and war veteran, returns to his tiny hometown in Northern England where he at first threatens and then brutalizes a group of local thugs who perpetrated a nasty and dangerous prank on his mentally disabled younger brother (Toby Kebbell).

If you've ever seen the Michael Caine classic Get Carter (1971) or the Charles Bronson anticlassic Death Wish (1974) -- or have even a passing knowledge of them -- you can probably guess where this goes.

But the opening credit sequence -- a series of 8mm home movies scored to Smog's mournful "Vessel In Vain" -- should tell you right away that writer/director Shane Meadows is up to something slightly different here. Meadows and Considine take this pulpy genre construct and use it to explore some pretty heady themes of grief, rage, and familial guilt and resentment. What promises to be a fun and nasty thrill ride will end up breaking your heart.

Meadows is one of the finest and least talked about filmmakers working today. Like all true directors, he understands that the root of a great film lies in the performance. In both Dead Man's Shoes and his followup This Is England (2006) -- a harrowing journey through the history of England's skinhead movement and its corruption by the rise of the National Front -- Meadows demonstrates a knack for matching the right actor with the right part (Considine here, the terrifying Stephen Graham in England). These aren't showy performances, but they'll hit you hard.

Meadows' style is not quite verité, but -- like Alejandro González Iñárritu (Amores Perros, 21 Grams, Babel) -- he uses verité to create a gritty and fully realized environment, and then blends it masterfully with a more traditional narrative approach. Like Iñárritu, the effect can border on histrionic at times. But, unlike Iñárritu, Meadows knows when to quit. He refuses to pound us over the head with social commentary, instead letting it bleed organically through the characters and the story.

Dead Man's Shoes is a simple movie, but you're unlikely to find a genre film this emotionally rich being produced on this side of the pond. Check it out.