Middletown

This Irish period drama finally gets a release just weeks before coming out on DVD – an admission, perhaps, of its failed intentions. ‘Middletown’ should be excellent: there’s a great cast, strong performances, classy cinematography and weighty themes. But it all falls down in the narrative. Matthew Macfadyen is Gabriel, a missionary who returns to preach in his home town in what appears to be the 1950s. There, his radical zeal holds no sway with his progressive sister-in-law Caroline (Eva Birthistle). Gradually, though, he puts the fear of God into the locals, who reluctantly start to skip their Sunday pint in case fire and brimstone rain down upon them. But the characters are slight and often clichéd, making the explosive ending excessively melodramatic. Gabriel’s extreme actions are surely the result of a fascinatingly warped mind, but we’re never given access to his thoughts: he rarely speaks outside of the pulpit. There’s scope here for a thought-provoking exploration of moral and religious issues in the community, but the one-dimensional characters and script let it down.