Hunger

The idea that war is messy and destructive is nothing new. But in Hunger, Steve McQueen’s film on the IRA prisoner Bobby Sands (Michael Fassbender), the focus on the physical body as both victim and weapon is novel and compelling. Hunger is heaving with a sense of the body – we see the grimace of the prison guard as he bathes his grazed knuckles, we feel the impact of the truncheons of the riot police brought in to ‘control’ the inmates and finally we experience the slow deterioration of the body of Bobby Sands as he subjects himself to starvation. And with the body comes bodily fluids; excrement is smeared on cell walls, blood colours the water during forced bathing, urine seeps from under prison doors – a constant reminder of how primitive this fight has become. Religion too plays a role with the implicit idea of martyrdom running through the film. Pale naked bodies are carried Christ-like through the prison corridors and scenes of prison beatings evoke images of the crucifixion. Despite the bleak subject matter Hunger is beautifully shot, exhibiting McQueen’s artistic background (he won the Turner prize in 1999) and while this style at times feels a little self-conscious, it rarely detracts from what is a remarkable debut. [Gail Tolley]