10/08/2021 - Paul Andrew Williams’ violent revenge tale feels familiar until it takes a sudden, and welcome, swerve into bonkers territory

There aren’t many rules that need to be followed once someone decides to embark on a murderous killing spree in movies, exacting vengeance on those who have done him or her wrong, but one in particular seems to be crucial – no matter how many knives are plunged into various body parts, you need to support this plan every step of the way. And this is where Paul Andrew Williams’ Bull – world-premiering at Fantasia – leaves one feeling a tad short-changed, as even despite Neil Maskell’s sad, puppy eyes, it’s hard to feel for someone who, at one point, expresses a rather unkind wish that “everyone can have a go” at his ex after she decides that she doesn’t love him no more, and wherever she goes next, their young son will go with her.

The problem is, as always, the father-in-law (David Hayman, delicious, in the kind of role that Werner Herzog tends to play every once in a while) – a tough guy controlling the hell out of their small town, who doesn’t like anyone yelling at his lass, even when she is the one cheating. In their world, it’s all very simple, really: Bull is out of control, and he needs to be stopped. But while no one could condone what is about to go down, it really feels like these guys might have a point, with the violence to follow feeling a bit like self-defence on their part, executed well in advance.

Still, while the actual revenge part leaves much to be desired, although just like in Kill Bill, it’s ultimately all about the love between a parent and a child, there are other things to enjoy – like a “slo-mo” shot of someone eating a Cheetos, as this is a relatively small-scale affair, and a whole lot of grandiose statements delivered with gusto. “Your family was put on Earth to destroy mine,” mutters Hayman, making one sad that people don’t talk to each other like that every day.

As Bull presses on with this project (picked up ten years after he was last seen in the neighbourhood and making the most out of his surprise entrance), the more Williams uncovers, the more nagging the feeling that some of it just doesn’t make sense. Not to mention that most of the action seems to be taking place at a fairground – the kind where you can apparently come with a really big gun and no one will even bat an eyelid. Which is why, when the whole story is finally revealed, there is nothing left to do but embrace it, with this particular exchange ringing in one’s ears once again:
-“There is something wrong with you.”
-“You have no idea.”
And that, folks, is the honest-to-God truth.

Bull is a UK production staged by Tea Shop Productions, Signature Films and Giant Productions, presented by Ingenious Media in association with Particular Crowd, with Signature Entertainment handling both international sales and distribution in the UK.