Film review: Savage is brutal, confronting and emotional

Post alert level 4 lockdown has seen a healthy dose of local films hitting cinemas.

Hot on the heels of comedies This Town and Lowdown Dirty Criminals comes must-see documentary The Girl on the Bridge and feature film Savage.

If the title doesn't mainline you into the subject matter of Savage - then the central character will. He's Danny. What he becomes is Damage.

The story of Damage unfolds over his life in three distinct chapters. His childhood in an abusive home and even more abusive boys' home, escaping with his brother Moses from another mother, to a life on the streets, before coming full circle, as Moses grows their brotherhood into a violent gang.

Damage falls into the role of enforcer, his appetite for destruction clearly waning along with the gang's support for Moses as their leader.

There will be blood.

The broken bodies, the broken lives, the brother against brother and the little boy who will always live inside the man, buried just under the skin, the tattoos and the scar tissue.

This is a brutal, confronting and, ultimately, very emotional watch.

I was left a little broken by the end, but in the way great storytelling breaks you - always leaving you with the faintest heartbeat of hope to help heal you. 

Early screenings have been sell-outs so support local. Wash your hands, grab your mask, practice your social distancing - and head to your local cinemas.

Savage is a five-star watch.