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WHAT THE CRITICS SAID
Hugh Linehan
Ronan Gallagher's short film, Underworld, is a taut, well-achieved psychological thriller about dishonour amongst thieves, which benefits from the powerful performances of Don Baker Michael McElhatton and Tomas O Suilleabhain as three gangsters whose bungled heist leads to recriminations and betrayal.'
'Atmospherically shot by Ronan Fox, Gallagher's film is particularly notable for its effective use of music and sound design, often a weakness in shorts.
Buena Vista Ireland, deserve credit as the only local representatives of the Hollywood majors willing to put anything back into the local industry by releasing Irish shorts with their features, as well as distributing films like 'I Went Down' and 'A Love Divided'
Sunday Tribune
Ciaran Carty
The centerpiece of Ronan Gallagher's 20-minute short 'Underworld' is a Pinter-like confrontation in a girl-friends apartment, between two men involved in a heist that's gone wrong.
Don Baker is bullying Michael Mc'Elhatton into agreeing to eliminate their accomplice Tomas O' Suilleabhain, whose mask was accidentally removed by a dying policewoman.
The sense of unstated menace and betrayal is riveting. What happens next is less subtle although the twist ending is appropriate to the genre.
Film West
Nicky Fennell
When Ronan Gallagher, fresh into his forties, set foot on a film set for the very first time, his role was as writer and director of Underworld, a 20 minute short film, starring Don Baker Michael McElhatton, Tomas O Suilleabhain and Susan Church. Quite an impressive line up for a first time director.
'Essentially for me , filmmaking is all about story telling. Without a story you're just making pretty pictures'
Ronan also pumped $40,000 of his own money into the film having sold up his restaurant to follow his ribbon of dreams.
'My attitude was that I have the money and if I'm not prepared to invest in myself then why the hell should I expect anybody else to?'
The finished product suggests that Ronan, despite his inexperience, knows a lot more about film than this story suggests. A tight, slick thriller, Underworld moves seamlessly from contemporary Americana-style action drama, to Argento-like supernatural thriller, pumped along by a pulsating soundtrack courtesy of Stephen McKeon and some very atmospheric visuals from camera-man Ronan Fox.