Turner Prize-winning artist Steve McQueen makes his narrative feature film debut with a harrowing recreation of the hunger strikes of the early '80s in the Maze Prison just outside of Belfast. Based on a screenplay co-written with playwright Enda Walsh, Hunger is a breathtaking accomplishment, distinguished by McQueen's meticulous eye for detail and his steadfast refusal to paint the characters as heroes, villains or martyrs. Every time one of the hunger strikers is subjected to a horrific physical search or a beating at the hands of baton-wielding guards, a sound bite from Margaret Thatcher reminds us of their status as terrorists.
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