---
title: "'71: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/71/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/71"
critics_score: 79
critics_reviews: 28
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# '71 (2014): what the critics said

Critics' score 79 from 28 reviews: 25 positive, 3 mixed, 0 negative.

Most critics find ’71 a tense, assured survival thriller, with praise concentrated on Yann Demange’s staging and Jack O’Connell’s performance as a young British soldier stranded in Belfast. The reviews repeatedly credit O’Connell with making the soldier’s fear and bewilderment convincing. The riot and chase sequences draw particular admiration, while the cinematography, editing and period detail make the confusion feel immediate without sacrificing suspense.

The spread runs from enthusiastic to mixed, with no outright negative reviews. Reservations centre on contrived plotting, thin characterisation and a final stretch that several critics find less convincing than the pursuit itself. Political depth is the main dividing point: Slant Magazine praises the attention to moral and political ambiguity, while Sight and Sound finds limited dramatic insight beneath the intensity. Time Out admires the tension but argues that the script accommodates too many divisions and opinions without sufficiently developing its characters.

## Empire — Nev Pierce

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 24 July 2014. Festival review. 

The film is a tense, gripping thriller about a young British soldier stranded in 1971 Belfast. Demange's direction and O'Connell's performance as a bewildered survivor stand out for their intensity and integrity.

[Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/71-review/)

## Los Angeles Times — Kenneth Turan

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 27 February 2015. 

The critic calls it an incendiary film that joins physical intensity, emotional authenticity and political acuity into a tense thriller. Demange's direction and the lead performance by Jack O'Connell are singled out for praise.

[Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-71-review-20150227-column.html)

## The Hollywood Reporter — Leslie Felperin

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 7 February 2014. Festival review. 

This muscular feature debut from Yann Demange is an outstanding urban thriller and war movie set during the Troubles, with subtle performances, splendid cinematography, and fine period detail that highlight the brutality and moral ambiguities on all sides.

[Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/71-berlin-review-678211/)

## The New York Times — Manohla Dargis

Rating NYT Critic’s Pick. 27 February 2015. 

The critic praises the film as an excitingly jumpy, finely calibrated chase movie about a British soldier caught behind enemy lines. Demange's talent for elegantly deployed action and complex choreography of bodies in space is singled out.

[Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/27/movies/review-in-71-young-green-and-behind-enemy-lines.html)

## Variety

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 7 February 2014. Festival review. 

The review describes it as a vivid, shivery survival thriller that turns Belfast streets into a war zone of peril. Jack O'Connell's galvanizing performance and the unstinting filmmaking are singled out.

[Read the review](https://variety.com/2014/film/features/berlin-film-review-71-1201090449/)

## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw

Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 12 October 2014. 

The critic highlights Jack O'Connell's mesmerising performance as the young soldier lost in Belfast's chaos and praises the film's muscular, moody atmosphere blending historical realism with post-apocalyptic dreamscapes. Strong ensemble work, especially from Sean Harris and Sam Reid, plus an effective score and sound design, elevate the taut thriller.

[Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/oct/12/71-review-muscular-moody-belfast-thriller)

## The AV Club — Mike D'Angelo

Rating B+. 26 February 2015. 

Demange’s accomplished debut captures the chaos and terror of 1971 Belfast with harrowing intensity and first-rate suspense as a young British soldier is separated from his unit, though it falters in the final third with cheap cynicism.

[Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/71-was-a-dangerous-year-to-roam-the-streets-of-belfast-1798182995)

## Little White Lies — Adam Woodward

Rating 4/4/3. 9 October 2014. 

Jack O’Connell continues to impress in this authentically gritty, compelling take on the Troubles as a young soldier navigates a harrowing night behind enemy lines. Strong on tension and the personal cost of war, it stumbles at the end with tacked-on elements.

[Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/71)

## Radio Times — Leslie Felperin

Rating 4/5. 

This superbly crafted war-zone thriller captures the confusion, bigotry and riven loyalties of the conflict in a neat dramatic microcosm, delivering an extraordinarily tense adventure story with an excellent lead performance.

[Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-phm7x9/71/)

## Screen Daily

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 7 February 2014. Festival review. 

A tense and exciting action-drama and remarkably assured feature debut that focuses on the horrors faced by a teen soldier rather than tackling the sectarian divide head-on. Visceral tension in the chase sequences and intriguingly complex supporting characters are highlighted.

[Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/71/5066348.article)

## Vulture — David Edelstein

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 27 February 2015. 

Jack O’Connell delivers a riveting performance as a novice soldier thrust into terror in Belfast, anchoring a blistering thriller that exposes the betrayals and political expediency of the Troubles even if it doesn’t always cohere.

[Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/2015/02/movie-review-jack-oconnell-stars-in-71.html)

## Slant Magazine — Kenji Fujishima

Rating 3/4. 18 September 2014. 

Demange’s debut distinguishes itself through close attention to political and moral ambiguities rather than pure visceral chaos, functioning as both a character drama of lost innocence and an effective action thriller with a clear-eyed perspective.

[Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/seventy-one/)

## Film Comment — Jonathan Romney

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 

The critic praises the film's hybrid of quasi-documentary realism and thriller elements in its depiction of a British soldier stranded in 1970s Belfast during the Troubles. It singles out the dynamic staging of the riot and the taut, muscular editing and cinematography for making the protagonist's disorientation compelling.

[Read the review](https://www.filmcomment.com/yann-demange-71-review/)

## Sight and Sound — Trevor Johnston

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 10 October 2014. 

Demange’s début wrings spills and thrills from the labyrinth of Ulster’s Troubles but offers limited dramatic insights. The film’s visceral intensity, immersive atmosphere and assured debut direction are singled out for praise.

[Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/film-week-71)

## The New Yorker — Anthony Lane

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 9 March 2015. 

The review presents the film as a tense survival story of a stranded British soldier in Belfast during the Troubles, comparing it to earlier films like Odd Man Out but noting it does not aim for deep political insight. The director's focus on military operations and infighting is highlighted as a strength in creating tension.

[Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/03/09/lost-souls-cinema-anthony-lane)

## The Times — Wendy Ide

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 10 October 2014. 

The review commends the propulsive tension and fresh take on the stranded-soldier premise set in 1970s Belfast, noting O'Connell's star quality and Demange's skilful handling of riot and chase sequences. Some plot strands involving undercover agents feel forced or less credible.

[Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/uk-travel/northern-ireland-travel/71-qgvvwnzf9wf)

## Evening Standard — Charlotte O'Sullivan

Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 10 October 2014. 

The chase thriller delivers visceral thrills and strong performances, especially from O'Connell and the young Corey McKinley. It becomes less plausible and schematic toward the end with a manipulative script structure.

[Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/71-starring-skins-actor-jack-o-connell-film-review-9786622.html)

## Time Out — Dave Calhoun

Rating 3/5. 8 February 2014. Festival review. 

Demange is a strong storyteller offering a masterclass in tension and a distinctive mix of realist drama with heightened genre elements, capturing a strong sense of time and place. Characterisation is thin and the script nods to too many opinions and divisions.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/71)

## Collider — Matt Goldberg

Rating A-. 12 September 2014. Festival review. 

The critic praises Yann Demange’s directorial debut as gripping and thoughtful, highlighting the brilliant direction, script, cinematography, editing, and especially Jack O’Connell’s phenomenal performance as a young British soldier abandoned in Belfast.

[Read the review](https://collider.com/71-review/)

## Digital Spy — Ben Rawson-Jones

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 10 October 2014. Festival review. 

The critic hails the film as a fascinating, powerful and immensely thrilling masterpiece that functions as both a gripping thriller and a harrowing time capsule of the Troubles. It singles out the series of perfectly orchestrated shocks and Jack O'Connell's engaging portrayal of the isolated lead.

[Read the review](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/bfi-london-film-festival/a602277/71-review-skins-star-jack-oconnell-in-extraordinary-thriller/)

## Eye for Film — Amber Wilkinson

Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 3 March 2015. 

The critic praises the focus on people over politics, taut action matched with emotional depth, and Demange's mature handling of the material alongside O'Connell's charismatic performance; the pared-down story hits home hard.

[Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/71-2014-film-review-by-amber-wilkinson)

## The Playlist — The Playlist Staff

Rating A-. 25 February 2015. Festival review. 

The review lauds the gripping, tense, and intelligent anti-war statement with excellent editing and O'Connell's intense performance; it navigates the complex territory with intelligence and sensitivity, though notes minor issues like multiple endings.

[Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/review-gripping-tense-intelligent-71-starring-jack-oconnell-20150225/)

## Consequence

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 15 March 2015. 

The critic highlights the film's realistic and shocking portrayal of violence and explosions, commending its tension-building endurance test and O’Connell’s vulnerable performance while noting its parable on the futility and pointlessness of war and factional fighting.

[Read the review](https://consequence.net/2015/03/film-review-71/)

## Den of Geek — Caroline Preece

Rating 4/5. 9 October 2014. 

The critic calls the film a fantastic thriller that effectively puts the viewer in the protagonist's shoes during his desperate flight through Belfast. It singles out the unbearably tense opening riot sequence and Jack O'Connell's outstanding performance.

[Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/71-review-2/)

## NME — Dan Brightmore

Rating 4/5. 8 October 2014. 

The critic describes the film as a compelling cinema verité-style indictment of conflict that never strays into gung-ho territory. It singles out the breathtaking attention to detail in recreating the Falls Road and the pulsating score by David Holmes.

[Read the review](https://www.nme.com/reviews/reviews-various-artists-15700-323775)

## HeyUGuys — Stefan Pape

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 9 February 2014. Festival review. 

The critic finds the film unrelentingly intense and suspenseful, praising Demange's handheld camera work and authentic portrayal of the conflict, but notes some contrivances in later sequences and a lack of subtlety.

[Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/71-review/)

## Paste — Tim Grierson

Rating 7.9. 24 February 2015. 

The review describes ’71 as a claustrophobic, intimate survival thriller focused on its protagonist's harrowing night in Belfast, praising O’Connell’s authentic embodiment of anxiety and Demange’s tense, vérité-style direction that underscores the futility of the conflict without grand statements.

[Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/71)

## The Skinny — Sam Lewis

Rating 3/5. 6 October 2014. 

The critic calls the debut feature a blistering, disturbing portrayal that succeeds as both an action movie and a political thriller. It singles out Jack O'Connell's muscular performance as the young recruit thrown into a nightmarish world.

[Read the review](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/new-releases/71)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/71.md