Grim cycle of violence and revenge

Despite the powerful performances and some fine scenes, we're numbed by the time of the over-the-top climax.

In 1979, Nickie Dryden, (Billy Connolly), a thug who indulges in violence towards the loved ones of his victims to ensure payment of debts, is arrested for murder by undercover cop Keltie, (Ken Stott). 20 years later, Dryden is out of prison, married to journalist Val, (Francesca Annis), and has established himself as a sculptor. But Keltie can't let the past rest; he becomes Dryden's nemesis, harrassing him in public. Meanwhile, Flipper, (Iain Robertson), a vicious young thug, wants to emulate Dryden, who rejects him. The scene is set for some violent confrontations... The Debt Collector is apparently based on a well-known Scottish character, an enforcer who served time but emerged from prison with a career as a sculptor. Billy Connolly plays the character with grim intensity; this is far from the actor's usual comic persona. Ken Stott gives a painfully edgy performance as the obsessed avenger, in a film where the 4-letter language and the often brutal violence are, at times, repellent. Though the cycle of revenge and violence is ironic at times, The Debt Collector, written and directed by theatre director Anthony Neilson, indulges in overkill so that, despite the powerful performances and some fine scenes, we're numbed by the time of the over-the-top climax. The Scottish accents also tend to be a bit impenetrable. Margaret's Comments: This uneven film doesn't seem to know what it wants to be - a revenge melodrama? a social drama? a love story? Because of its lack of focus it tends to fail on all fronts, making some of the more melodramatic moments merely ludicrous. Billy Connelly doesn't quite cut it as the reformed nasty turned sculptor although Francesca Annis is really very good as his wife. And the motivation for the policeman's harrassment is extremely murky and if we are to believe some of his tirades then the film has a remarkably reactionary subtext