Brie Larson sets her sights on the main prize in gangster comedy that has cult hit written all over it

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Massachusetts, late 70s. Justine (Brie Larson) has brokered a meeting in a deserted warehouse between two Irishmen (Cillian Murphy, Michael Smiley) and a gang led by Vernon (Sharlto Copley) and Ord (Armie Hammer) who are selling them a stash of guns. But when shots are fired in the handover, a heart stopping game of survival ensues.

• April 18th 2017
• 7 days ago
• /video/video.news.com.au/Entertainment/

Brie Larson (left) and Sharlto Copley in a scene from Free Fire. Picture: Kerry Brown

FREE FIRE

Three stars

Director Ben Wheatley

Starring Brie Larson, Sharlto Copley, Noah Taylor

Rating MA 15+

Running time 91 minutes

Verdict Trigger-happy gangster comedy

WHEN Ben Wheatley gets his hands on Chekov’s gun, all bets are off.

“If in the first act you have hung a pistol on the wall, then in the following one it should be fired. Otherwise don’t put it there,” was the Russian playwright’s oft-quoted piece of advice.

Having armed every one of his dozen protagonists, the English filmmaker takes Chekov’s directive to its logical conclusion.

And he doesn’t wait until Act 2 to pull the trigger.

Larson is full of surprises in Free Fire. Picture: Kerry Brown.Source:AP

Set in an abandoned warehouse in Boston, Free Fire is an absurdly funny, skilfully-executed 91-minute shootout that recalls the violent comedy of early Tarantino minus the pop culture-heavy dialogue.

Its 70s setting — wide lapels, open chested shirts, and lush moustaches — provides welcome visual relief.

Brie Larson turns in a nicely-judged performance as the film’s unconventional femme fatale.

Sharlto Copley (District 9) has fun with the role of a South African arms dealer who blanches at the sight of his own blood.

Armie Hammer’s smug intermediary works well alongside Cillian Murphy’s dashing IRA soldier.

And Sam Riley is disturbingly grubby as the junkie who has been employed to act as his muscle.

(From left) Armie Hammer, Brie Larson and Cillian Murphy in a scene from the film. Picture: Kerry BrownSource:AP

Noah Taylor’s seedy underworld figure is less memorable.

Wheatley is a director with a distinctive vision as he showed in the 2011 horror film Kill List and more recently in his arresting adaptation of J.G. Ballard’s High-Rise with Tom Hiddleston.

But Free Fire plays more like an in-joke than a fully-fledged feature.

While the film showcases Wheatley’s talent as a filmmaker, it’s hard to shake the sense that cast and crew had more fun making it than we are watching.

Free Fire has cult hit written all over it.

But for this reviewer, it’s a bit too smart and self-absorbed for its own good.

Free Fire opens on Thursday (April 27).