The Horseman review

A father goes on a rampage of revenge, which is more moving than you'd expect

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Avenging his daughter’s death by hook, crook and crowbar, ‘pest-control’ expert Christian (Peter Marshall) offs enough Aussie lowlifes to shame Mad Max.

“D’ya like football?” he asks one, before doing something unspeakable to him with a soccer pump; a moment that passes for levity amid the sad, saturated blues that swamp Steven Kastrissios’ brutal but affecting revenge flick.

Like Dead Man’s Shoes with twice the malice, half the mystery and a lot more genital mutilation, the film’s saved from accusations of torture porn by Marshall’s moving performance, which makes palpable the pain of each new atrocity he’s compelled to commit.

Freelance Writer

Matt Glasby is a freelance film and TV journalist. You can find his work on Total Film - in print and online - as well as at publications like the Radio Times, Channel 4, DVD REview, Flicks, GQ, Hotdog, Little White Lies, and SFX, among others. He is also the author of several novels, including The Book of Horror: The Anatomy of Fear in Film and Britpop Cinema: From Trainspotting To This Is England.