Bull – Fantasia Review (4/5)

BULL is a new revenge thriller from the UK, which delivers some amazing surprises along the way. The acting is spot-on and the story evolves in the most brutal ways, you can imagine. Read our full Bull (2021) movie review here!

BULL is a new thriller from the UK, which has a rather classic revenge story. And then again, it does surprise along the way. Both in terms of the extremely brutal events that take place, but also as far as the actual story goes.

I loved the ending of Bull which has a final surprise as well. For the longest time, it’s a bit of a mystery since the title character has been gone for 10 years and suddenly reappears. You’ll get the story of why he disappeared in flashbacks. All while seeing revenge acted out on the way to that bittersweet ending!

Continue reading our  Bull (2021) movie review below. We screened it at Fantasia 2021 and you should watch it whenever you can.

Thriller with a deep horror streak!

While watching this thriller – which has huge horror moments along the way – I kept having this feeling of impendent doom. Still, I had no idea just how dark this story would turn out. I doubt anyone will guess it, but even if you do, I doubt it will take anything away from the viewing experience.

The less you know about the plot twists in Bull the better. Just watch it and let yourself be engulfed in this tragic story.

To me, Bull (2021) was a truly delightful surprise to watch. Actually, delightful is definitely not the right word to describe the brutal and sinister events that take place in this film. Still, it was such an unexpected experience to watch this movie that it’s the word that came to mind.

Neil Maskell is perfect as Bull

This thriller sports amazing portrayals from the entire cast. Not one character falls through and that’s certainly a testament to the actors involved – as well as the director, of course.

Still, Neil Maskell in the title role as Bull is the one that stays with me.

Neil Maskell is the kind of actor I always enjoy watching. He’s often had some comedy in his performances, but in Bull, he is all about the darkness. You may know Neil Maskell from Ben Wheatley’s Kill List (2011) or the original UK version of Utopia which was recently remade in the US as an Amazon Original series.

Bull is a tough guy that looks like a sweetheart but can also kill you at the drop of a hat.

However tough “Bull” is, it’s not without reason. And this is very much a revenge story. Bull shows up in the small town ruled ruthlessly by his father-in-law. The father-in-law is portrayed by David Hayman, who you might know from the FX series Taboo starring its co-creator Tom Hardy.

Make sure you watch Bull when you can!

Paul Andrew Williams is the writer and director behind Bull. This is far from the first movie by Paul Andrew Williams, but in recent years he’s been working more in television. He directed 5 episodes of the hugely successful Broadchurch series starring David Tennant and Olivia Colman.

After that, he went on to also directing episodes of Strangers and A Confession. All series with impressive IMDb ratings! However, before you go thinking he’s only doing thriller and crime stories, you should know he also wrote and directed the horror movie The Cottage (2008) starring Andy Serkis.

Whether you’ve watched any of the above-mentioned productions or not, just know that Paul Andrew Williams has created a deliciously dark movie with Bull. One that is dripping with malice and revenge in all the right ways!

BULL was screened at Fantasia 2021, but it is also coming out in UK theaters (November 5, 2021) and the US from April 5, 2022.

Details

Director: Paul Andrew Williams
Writer: Paul Andrew Williams
Stars: Neil Maskell, David Hayman, Elizabeth Counsell, Lois Brabin Platt, Jason Milligan