From Next Wave Motion Pictures 2013
Sacrifice is, to all intents and purposes, a gangster movie set in London. In point of fact it is much more than that. Starring Dave Courtney as Frank Morgan, Dan Brando as Marco Carbone, Robert Toretto as Enzo Carbone and Price Lindsey as Nick Hayden, the story has more twists and turns than a bowl of fusilli.
Frank Morgan pretty much runs South East London with the Carbone brothers running their own territory. These rival factions come together in an unusual deal which goes badly wrong when a group of young car thieves steal a car laden with the cocaine which formed the basis of the Morgan/Carbone deal. Throw into the mix the ever present desire for rival factions to wipe each other out and a complex story of ambition and betrayal emerges. As the story unfolds we are given insights into the lives of diverse groups of people. The young thieves, the employees of Frank Morgan and the Carbone brothers, the prostitute Charlene (beautifully played by Natalia Francesca) who is forced to pay Frank for "protection" and is persecuted by a neighbour, Kayleigh (the ever talented Francesca Marie). And weaving subtly through all of this is the enigmatic tale of a card player Nick Hayden (a superbly elegant performance by Price Lindsey). Hayden is a sort of "Mentalist" character for whom a close shave in New York finds him fleeing to London where he very quickly establishes himself as a master poker player and finds himself ultimately at a big-money card game organised by Frank Morgan. The twists and turns continue keeping the viewer on the edge of their seats with the ending bring in even more surprises.
Ryan Claffey's dialogue in this film is masterful. Despite the serious subject matter he still manages to include some humour which gives a very authentic feel to the script. An illustration: Franco Carbone is lecturing his younger brother Enzo and becoming a bit animated. Enzo: You're drunk again. Marco: No, I'm not drunk. I'm just thinking clearly, that's all.
The Next Wave partnership of Writer/Director, Ryan Claffey and DOP/Exec Producer, Carl Michael have once again produced a miracle with this ultra low budget film. They have a rare talent for producing quality material combined with wonderful photography and for attracting the very best actors who give their time for free.
Sacrifice premièred on 31st August at the Portobello Film Festival and has just been nominated by the Festival for an award.
