The Irish Troubles Film 'Dead Shot' Can't Quite Pull the Trigger
Dead Shot, which debuted on Sky TV in May 2023 and played at the 2023 Edinburgh Film Festival, sits in a weird nether zone of British media made about the Irish Troubles, unafraid to show the complicated morality and brutality of the conflict but hampered by a vague centrism that might have been fixed if more Irish voices were present behind the camera. For those who feel lost watching Derry Girls, the “Northern Ireland conflict” lasted about thirty years, but its origins go back decades, if not centuries. British military presence in Northern Ireland was designed to quell momentum built primarily by the nationalist paramilitary IRA (Irish Republican Army). However, their occupation only increased tensions, and violence lasted throughout the period.
Set in 1975, Dead Shot takes place before the tenure of Conservative prime minister Margaret Thatcher but after IRA violence had severely escalated in the decade thus far. In the film, Michael O’Hara (Merlin’s Colin Morgan) rejoins the paramilitary group he retired from to stage a bombing in London to hunt down the British soldier who shot his unarmed, pregnant wife. As he evades the military, he finds his way back to Keenan, an IRA leader working at a school who will only offer help if Michael will help move explosives around London to be used in future attacks – Michael has no choice but to agree.
The soldier who killed Michael’s wife, Tempest (Aml Ameen), has escaped justice for killing Carol by joining a secret police force to clamp down on IRA members in London and has returned to a singer he loves, Ruth (Sophia Brown). He’s fixated on finding Michael and bringing him to justice after his public and costly mistake in the field, drawing the two men together for a destined showdown.
