I Went Down . Tucson Weekly . 07-13-98

I Went Down

DIRECTED BY: Paddy Breathnach

REVIEWED: 07-13-98

Male-identified films, especially those grouped within the buddy genre, often go out of their way to direct audience attention away from queer interpretations of male-male relationships. In some ways that holds true for this Irish production--we get the mandatory female love interest; a three-second sex scene; and plenty of discussions about female hardware. The much more interesting and consequential narrative, however, involves the burgeoning Odd Couple-esque relationship between a doe-eyed ex-con named Git (Felix) and his bumbling partner (Oscar). They are brought together because both are working off debts of sorts to a mob boss, and initially their personality differences result in animosity and frustration. Many references to Git's titanic manhood later, the two decide to put their girls on the side and move to the United States. It's a formula we've all seen before: After many obstacles, the couple couples and rides off into the sunset. The satisfying and self-referential ending of I Went Down is welcome, too, because the weak comedic elements (madcap antics, pratfalls) that occur throughout the film become increasingly tedious and annoying.

--Higgins

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