pc95 (spoilers)I enjoyed watching director John Marsh's "Shadow Dancer", an espionage suspense movie set in UK with a story of a Irish woman emotionally scarred by her young brother's tragic death in the 70s during English/Irish conflicts in Belfast. Most of the movie is set in early 90s Ireland when the IRA fought against English rule. Headlines and fighting in this civil/domestic war have been burnt out for good measure since then, but this story features competent acting and satisfactory suspense. The couple of twists were mixed, one well done, and one predictable. Andrea Risborough is a gorgeous and expressive actress, with wide expressive blue eyes. Her Irish accent is spot on (dont know if she herself is actually Irish). She led the movie with quiet expressive resilience. 7/10

SnoopyStyle Collette (Andrea Riseborough) grew up with the Troubles in Belfast. In 1993, she plants a bomb in the London tube and gets caught. MI5 operative Mac (Clive Owen) gets the single mom to turn. She reluctantly gives Mac some intel and MI5 stage an ambush. The IRA is suspicious and Collette could be in danger. Meanwhile, Mac's boss Kate Fletcher (Gillian Anderson) seems to have her own agenda. Also the burgeoning peace plan is dividing the republicans.This movie is very low key and slow paced. Also I haven't noticed Andrea Riseborough in her other works. She seems to be very plain and plays her character very close to the vest. The emotions come out only in a couple of scenes. It all gives this movie a sense of realism. However the slow pace does take its toll. The tension is on a slow boil for most of the movie. The suspense is limited because there is no mystery here. There is a big twist in the end but the story generally lays out everything. The only thing left is a character study. Riseborough seems to be a good actress, and it's a functional movie on that basis.

Chris L The film starts excellently by 25 minutes of high level, with surgical, captivating scenes that are the opening scene in Belfast, the subway scene in London and the interrogation. At this moment, one is thinking this might be a great movie.Unfortunately, the rest is less glorious because the script runs out of steam quite violently and turns to an ultra conventional thriller relying on predictable developments. The rhythm falls simultaneously with the interest for this more than classical plot. The movie therefore ends linearly by a not so surprising unfolding.Too bad because the beginning was very good and the quality of the mise-en-scène, the cinematography and the cast augured a much more singular movie, despite a theme — the Troubles — already largely depicted.

gradyharp SHADOW DANCER (definition: a dance presented by casting shadows of dancers on a screen) is another film about the conflicts of the IRA during the 1990s. Despite the fact that the theme is a recurring one in films, the core meaning of the conflict remains a bewildering mystery to those not living in Ireland or in England, and that is what makes this film fall short of being excellent - there is much significant information that is not shared with the audience as though we all understand fully both sides of the conflict well enough to muddle through the outlines of the plot that are presented. Tom Brady wrote screenplay based on his own novel and even director James Marsh can't seem to iron it out into a comprehensible story.The film opens in 1973 in Belfast when young Collette (Maria Laird) is asked by her father to run an errand but she is far more interested in making bead necklaces so she sends her younger brother Sean (Ben Smyth) who is killed outside their home. Jump to 1993 and Collette (Andrea Riseborough), mother of a young son, has become a mole ('tout') for the IRA, and is arrested in the London tube after leaving a bomb in the facility. MI5 (definition: Military Intelligence section 5 is a British intelligence agency working to protect the UK's national security against threats such as terrorism and espionage) Agent Mac (Clive Owen) offers a deal to Collette to become an informer. She accepts the agreement to protect her son and in return Mac offers a new identity to her after a period working for the MI5. Soon Mac learns that his superior Kate Fletcher (Gillian Anderson) is using Collette to protect her mole inside the Irish organization. Mac tries to find the identity of the informer and protect Collette. In the midst of all of this Collette's brothers Connor (Domhnall Gleeson) and Gerry (Aidan Gillen) and their mother (Brid Brennan) become targets for both sides. In the end the true informer is a surprise to everyone and the film documents the impact of terrorism on family and its human cost. Though there are moments of fine acting, the entire movie seems as though it was shot in a fog: the focus is as blurry as the action. If the audience is completely familiar with the IRA vs. MI5 conflicts, then the film will likely appeal. Otherwise, read up about Irish politics before attempting to understand all the nuances in this film. Grady Harp