The first part seemed interminably long and pointless but thankfully, the film picks up towards the middle, with that awesome, well-acted, and compelling conversation between Sands and the priest which sheds light on the scenes that came before it and the subsequent depiction of the hunger strike. An emotionally stirring and realistic albeit painful and extremely tough to watch portrayal of mad but principled determination.

As prison-movie machismo, Walter Hill's Undisputed is better; as visual art, Jan Troell's Everlasting Moments is superior.

Harrowing, irreverent, fearless, virtuosic, inimitable, beautiful, unforgettable. Steve McQueen shows himself a true artist; in the hands of a more experienced director, this could have been a film with more technical proficiency and a screenplay that obeyed the traditional laws of character arc and continuity, and as such, would have been another above-average movie about the Irish Troubles to throw on the pile. Cheers to McQueen for having the balls to make the movie he wanted. It's great.

"McQueen's film is a nuanced masterpiece that never flaunts its artistry, but uses it humbly to serve the all-important story." - Lauren Wissot

Very daring and executed amazingly well. I'm just not sure if the audience was supposed to sympathise with Bobby Sands

Three very good acts, which are almost three different stories, but all tied together very well, and ultimately very effective. Amazing debut by McQueen, the mood and atmosphere was stunning.

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After repeated viewings, the impact has gone away and stands as a fairly standard biopic, but still better than most. I can't wait for the Fela Kuti bio, there is no way that can fail.

I watched this film to learn more about the Irish Troubles, and to be honest, I learnt nothing. Instead, Director Steve McQueen (no, not that one, a different one) presented me with a graphic and emotionally painful meditation on human conviction. Too bad you already have to know a fair bit about the Irish troubles to fully appreciate it: some more background context on Irish Republicanism and the era would've made this film far more captivating than it already was.

Hard film to watch but good nonetheless.

Hunger has everything that a good film is made of, great cinematography, realistic acting, and flawless writing. Every character seemed beleivable and not in any way flat. My only complaint with the film is that there was lots of jumping around of characters and some of the characters that seemed to be important earlier in the film became non-existant altogether. This film is a perfect example of "show, don't tell". There is very little diologue yet every scene seems powerful.

Bleak and without easy answers, but it's a very powerful film. Relying almost entirely on ambiance and the implied thoughts and feelings of the characters, most of the dialogue is incidental to the frustration, hate and desperation that oozes through the picture. By leaving characterization at a minimum it actually becomes even more powerful as it avoids begging for specific sympathy, letting the general pain of civil strife come to the fore.

I find it hard to dislike this film and, at the same time, hard to LOVE it. It is beautifully shot, passionately acted, and powerful. However, it kills me that after "the scene" the film just kind of falls away. This probably deserves a higher rating, and normally I would rewatch it...but I don't want to.

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Fassbender's dedication to displaying the horrors of starvation is actually overshadowed by his scene with the priest, a lengthy bit of dialogue that explains Bobby Sands' motivations without feeling like static exposition. The rest of the film is good, too, particularly in its portrayal of prisoner abuse; possibly the most dehumanizing instance since Midnight Express. McQueen shoots it all with the eye of an auteur but an uneven narrative keeps this one just shy of greatness.

Captivating, real, disturbing. Fantastic film.

Watch it *Sonbahar*

Meh. Relies on a lot of shock value of that sort of "beauty of ugliness" which I find very boring and a bit cheap. I didn't care to see a sympathetic portrait of Sands, much less one that glorifies his martyrdom to such an extent. I will admit that the film has some powerful cinematography, good performances and a very well-written dialogue at its center. But I thought it was trying to appear even-handed when it was really quite one-sided, nor was I impressed by its "edgy" brutality and squalor.

Second watch: Even better. An inspired, brilliant way to tell this story, and just so beautifully shot. FitFortDanga has some valid points in his review, but for me, the film is so effective that it doesn't really matter.

Powerful and nicely done.

I know what is happening here, and I appreciate the genius behind it, but there just seems like there's some disconnect between this movie and my heart. I never really felt swept up in it. (The closest I got was during the conversation between Bobby Sands and the priest, which is definitely the best part of the film.)

very icky :)

Fassbender delivers a superb performance with Bale-esque commitment. Sublime directorial debut for McQueen.

A shockingly brutal portrayal of one aspect of the conflict in Ireland.

Hunger is a film that is unconventionally shot, unyielding in showing us the conditions of the prison, but also not fun at all for the audience. It's an art house film about how terrible life can be for people fighting for their rights, and the lengths that they'll go to in order to procure said rights, but its lack of character depth and its desolate tone make it a watch that is absolutely no fun.

An incredibly powerful work with so much working for it. I simply love the film's unique structure of visceral, uncompromisingly brutal (while simultaneously beautiful to behold) content surrounding a single Spartan conversation in an empty room about the issues at the core of the story. It's not didactic, nor is it exactly neutral. It shows what the situation, and ultimately humanity, truly is: complicated to the point of absurdity. It's a draining experience, but also an unforgettable one.

What it lacks in accessibility it makes up for in craftsmanship and performances.