I was surprised
Release: 1st April 2011 The best scene in Killing Bono has to be the opening scene where we see Ben Barnes, in his character Neil McCormick, narrates a brief of what the story of Killing Bono is about without directly looking at the camera. At another point in the film, it proves significant and you would figure out why I thought it was the best scene.
The coming-of-age story features brothers Neil and Ivan McCormick (Robert Sheehan) who attempt to break into the music industry and when attempting, they look up to their secondary school friends U2 as they become an extremely popular band.
The good bits: This perspective of U2, one of the most successful bands ever, from brothers that are unheard of is one that U2 fans are recommended to view as they'll learn some more about their favourite band's history. The acting from Sheehan and Barnes is convincing, particularly from Barnes who possesses a strong Irish accent in this film despite being an English actor. This story is very intriguing. It grips you, especially in the scenes where there's a conflict, so it doesn't make sure that you'll be heading for the exits at any time. There are no useless scenes – the film contains a lot in the two hours that it spans in, and all the scenes fill in the time rather than waste it. The late Pete Postlethwaite made his last appearance in this film. The film has some messages in life that the characters come to realise. Life's too short to be dreaming about success, go ahead and go for it. Compared to Hamm's last film, Godsend, this is a superior effort from the director.
The bad bits: It'll appeal to U2 fans but it does not have any of their music as the film mainly focuses on the McCormick's so that may disappoint some. The film strikes an uneven balance between comedy and drama. One moment makes the audience laugh and the next changes the tone completely. A lot of the second half is serious drama. It doesn't have an emotional core. There's a character that, thanks to his actions, would be more likely to be looked at with pity rather than sympathy during his bad times. Unlike most bio-pics, don't expect to be inspired by the end. Making a film revolved around unknown real life figures will probably not grab many people's attention so Killing Bono is unlikely to be successful.
Verdict: It doesn't go without its flaws and isn't anything outstanding but Killing Bono is an interesting, entertaining, and sometimes funny film. I was surprised to see that it was actually a good film.
Check out more of Musanna's Film Reviews @ musannaahmed.blogspot.com
