Hyena (2015)
Drew Tinnin
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Starring Stephen Graham, Neil Maskell, MyAnna Buring, Peter Ferdinando
Directed by Gerard Johnson
Because of the extraordinary circumstances depicted in Gerard Johnson’s dark crime thriller, Hyena, it might come as a surprise that the story is based on years of research and is also partly based on someone that Johnson and company actually spent time with over ten years ago. Within the frames of Hyena, the different levels of corruption are explored in a very deliberate slow descent into total oblivion, a descent that takes a very real look into the lives of some that think they’re righteous and others that know they’re unjust.
Centering around the horrors of human trafficking and the lives that it destroys in the name of twisted entertainment for the business elite of the cities underground, Michael (Peter Ferdinando), a “good” police officer, must try to maintain a sense of order as the rise of the Albanian crime circuit starts to take hold in the secret societies of London. Resembling a pack of fearless scavengers, Michael and his other counterparts have questionable morals and seem a little too over-assured when dealing with the seedier side of the cities nightlife. Once an old friend (Stephen Graham) of Michael’s takes over the vice squad, a seemingly solid plan to get a taste of the profits takes a turn for the worst (to put it lightly). Michael suddenly finds himself alone trying to protect a scared, battered woman named Ariana (Elisa Lasowski) while trying to maintain his morality as a man when his actions can’t help but bring out his beastliness.
The bursts of red, mad violence in Hyena are tapered by the human drama that paints the perpetrators as pure monsters and Johnson’s sure hand that never lingers too long on something just for the sake of shock. If sawing up a body into pieces and seeing what can almost be described as a blood ritual might make you look away, just be glad that Johnson eventually wound up cutting a torture scene involving a clothes iron because he wasn’t happy with the amount of steam in the shot. But don’t let that fool you, through Johnson’s extensive research he became deeply moved by stories of women who had really experienced everything that Ariana’s character goes through in the film. Adding the human element, quite literally, Hyena staves off any criticism that it might be violence for violence sake.
The sound mix is also incredibly dynamic breathing life into the dark city streets giving the feeling that London is a live, breathing animal that might resemble the titular hyena even more than the main character does. Because of Johnson’s well-documented attention to detail in the mix there’s a real sense of being there right in the thick of the action which also makes the more emotional moments hit a little harder.
Hyena is one of the more thought-provoking crime films in some time that chooses to explore the various levels of corruption and tiny evils committed on a daily basis and how those seemingly innocuous choices eventually lead to a total devolution of morality. Michael, just like the Albanians and the Turks he turns his nose up at, are products of an unforgiving environment that breaks down any semblance of humanity if you let it. The ending is too abrupt, almost like a call back to the series finale of The Sopranos and the pacing makes it challenging to power through at times, but that doesn’t keep Hyena from leaving a lasting bite.
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Film
Categorized:Reviews
