Barber

by George Wolf

The marketing for Barber tells us that “everybody has a secret.”

True enough. And there are indeed secrets being kept in this Irish mystery, but none quite as momentous as the film would like us to believe.

Veteran actor Aidan Gillen stars as Valentine (Val) Barber, a former Dublin “guard” (cop) who got tossed from the force and now, in the recent past of masks and sanitizer, works as a private investigator. Barber’s P.I. beat usually involves insurance fraud or cheating spouses, but he can’t refuse the sudden offer that comes from a worried grandmother with deep pockets.

Her 20 year-old granddaughter Sara is missing, and though other family members aren’t too concerned, Grandma suspects kidnapping.

So Barber is on the case, and while he’s learning more about Sara, director and co-writer Finton Connolly makes sure we learn plenty more about Barber.

This character study arc is really where the film is most effective. Barber has a complicated relationship with his ex-wife, his teenage daughter and his former colleagues, and the reliable Gillen (Game of Thrones, Bohemian Rhapsody, Queer as Folk, the Maze Runner franchise) makes the mussy-haired mick a sympathetic lug.

And with this solid ensemble and gritty detective aesthetic, wanting more from Barber seems to be the point here. But while the film covers some important issues (#metoo, homophobia, powerful men abusing power), the stakes all play out as a bit dated and less than thrilling. Tack on an awkward third act twist, and the future cases that Barber clearly teases might be more fitting for episodic TV.