Powerful acting, stark images propel ‘Fifty Dead Men Walking’

Jim Sturgess and Ben Kingsley in "Fifty Dead Men Walking" Martin McGartland (Jim Sturgess) gets recruited by Fergus (Ben Kingsley) to spy on the IRA in “Fifty Dead Men Walking.”

Kari Skogland’s fact-based thriller “Fifty Dead Men Walking” is a gritty, character-driven throwback to Sidney Lumet’s 1973 fact-based undercover cop drama “Serpico,” this time without the cop.

The unlikely undercover agent here is a street hustler in 1988 Belfast, Ireland, the center of violent political clashes between the Irish Republican Army and the British soldiers occupying the city.

Like “Serpico,” “Fifty Dead Men Walking” begins with the shooting of the main character, here, Martin McGartland, taking six bullets from a would-be assassin.

Appealing English actor Jim Sturgess plays Martin as a conflicted soul constantly drawn into suspenseful circumstances.

The IRA could discover his treachery at any moment! (Read more…)

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