Our movie guy, John McCann, says Cardboard Gangsters is a gritty drama which is a welcome break from the recent blockbuster buffet he’s been feasting on…

As a welcome break from the glut of big budget summer blockbusters this week, I settled down in my comfy cinema seat to enjoy Mark O’Connor’s latest offering, Dublin crime drama ‘Cardboard Gangsters’.

That comfort was short-lived however, as the raw and gritty realistic nature of a drug war raging in Darndale, gripped my attention mercilessly for the next 90 minutes in what was yet another showcase for what is the thriving film making scene that exists in Ireland at the moment.

Continued below…

‘Cardboard Gangsters’ follows a group of young Cardboard Gangsters and their attempt to gain control of the drug trade in Darndale, chasing the glorified lifestyle of money, power and sex.

Jay Connolly (John Connors) is a part-time DJ and low-level drug dealer. However, when his welfare is cut off, he decides it’s time for him and his gang to enter the big leagues which attracts the attention of the local kingpin and sets Jay down a violent and bloody path.

Having already encapsulated festival audiences around the world, the film has won three awards at the Manchester Film Festival (Best Actor, Best Feature Film and Film of the Festival) and was awarded Outstanding Achievement in Film making at the Newport Beach Film Festival in California.

It is currently enjoying a nationwide release to high critical and audience acclaim.

For those who pine for the days of TV shows like Love/Hate, this film is definitely the tonic for you as the authenticity of this world is captured perfectly in the writing and direction of Mark O’Connor and a towering performance by the immensely talented John Connors, who is at the forefront of all that is good in this film (it also features the great Damien Dempsey in a cameo role, which can only be a positive!).

Galvanised by some fantastic Dublin rap music, this well-made and faithful drama never glamourises its subject matter and contains large quantities of heart, humour and hurt resulting in hard-hitting film that will leave its audience shaken long after the end credits roll!

4/5

For more of John McCann’s movie reviews, check out his Facebook page here and website here