On February 8, 1977, Tony Kiritsis entered the office of Richard Hall, president of the Meridian Mortgage Company, and took him hostage with a sawed-off shotgun wired with a “dead man’s wire” from the trigger to Tony’s own neck.

Based on a true story, ‘Dead Man’s Wire’ is a tense thriller about a hostage scenario that played out in late 1970s Indianapolis. It stars Bill Skarsgård in a relatively rare non-monster role as Tony Kiritsis, a man who holds a deadly grudge against the owner of a mortgage brokerage who he holds responsible for collapsing a land development deal that could have made him significant profit. On turning up at the Meridian Mortgage company with a pistol and a shotgun in hand, he discovers the man he is looking for is actually on vacation, so he decides to take his son hostage instead, setting in motion a fraught few days as police negotiators try to resolve the situation without death.

The film is directed by Gus Van Sant, who hasn’t made a film in 7 years, and the title refers to the method Kiritsis uses to control the situation by attaching a wire to a shotgun which will go off should there be any sudden movements or attempts by law enforcement to take him out. It’s a very American story that plays out almost comedically despite the serious setting, with a convergence of law enforcement, criminals, radio DJs and the press all trying to get a piece of the story. The cast is led by Skarsgård who is superb in an edgy, jittery performance, with Dacre Montgomery also good as the man taken hostage (Richard Hall). Supporting performances come from the likes of Cary Elwes, Myha’la, Colmin Domingo and Al Pacino as the hostage’s father, in a quite literally phoned in performance.

Influences on the film include 70s movies (appropriate for the setting and time period) such as ‘Dog Day Afternoon’, and it portrays the story as being one of these early examples of a live incident that unfolds in people’s homes as well as in real life through television, and I think Van Sant’s direction captures this new dynamic pretty well. I was gripped throughout ‘Dead Man’s Wire’, largely through Skarsgård’s top performance, and from not knowing how the story played out, and even as it is a little derivative at times, I thought it was very entertaining.

Rating: 4/5

Directed By: Gus Van Sant

Starring: Bill Skarsgård, Dacre Montgomery, Cary Elwes, Myha’la, Colman Domingo and Al Pacino

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt15181326/