I Went Down – Review

Plato, The Republic: “I went down to the Peiraeus yesterday with Glaucon, the son of Ariston.”

The movie opens at prison in Dublin. Git Hynes (McDonald) has three months left. In the visitor auditorium, his girlfriend Sabrina Bradley tells him he needs to let her go as she is now with one of his old friends Anto, and brings an engagement ring back. Bummer for Git, but I guess that’s the luck you land while being incarcerated after breaking and entering.

On release day, Git sparks a cigarette and walks out with his red bag. He hits up a bar, where local football hooligan Anto (Wilmot) is selling raffle tickets. They are old friends, however due to reckless gambling, Anto has now fallen in with Johnner Doyle (McElhatton) and Bunny Kelly (Gleeson), two local tough guy thugs who are owed money. Git knows he needs to talk over Sabrina and life with Anto, so he heads back to find his “friend.”

Too bad Anto is being questioned by Johnner, and held down by Steo, while the pair threaten to hammer smash some hands. This won’t end well for anyone it seems, but Git snaps into action, breaking bottles and taking down Johnner and Steo. Anto is saved!

So… what’s next for the pair of gents? Well, local boss man Tom French (Doyle) steamrolls them into a new plan and plot twist. Unfortunately, Johnner is now disfigured. Doubly unfortunate, he is French’s wife’s sister’s boy. French can’t have this type of act stand. Now that Johnner can’t pick up some money from an associate, it’s up to Git, as a repayment on Anto’s gambling debts as well as making this act right. Git pairs up with Bunny Kelly, and the men roll out to bring the associate back to Dublin.

I Went Down is a well done yet silly movie about an ex-con, a goofy mobster, and the shenanigans they get up to while following the boss’ orders. Many characters and scenes are unpredictable, leading to an entertaining criminal affair. While nothing presented may be brand new, a good cast, fun script and ridiculous characters go far enough. It can get a touch bloody, but mostly the movie keeps a light tone considering it deals with gangsters.