This is a tale of blood lust, and Cox soaks the entire film in violence and depravity. There isn't a subtle moment anywhere; everything is heightened and luridly over-the-top, borrowing heavily both from Baz Luhrmann's Romeo & Juliet and Kubrick's A Clockwork Orange. And this mannered, wacky approach extends to the performances as well--biting, spitting acting that's impossible to buy into. Jacobi and Henry just about keep their dignity, but everyone else gives into the frenzied style and leaves the film far too annoying and tedious to grab us in any meaningful way. You actually worry that Eccleston might burst a vein in his neck as he barks out his dialog;and this is a problem, because as he's the central character, so we should feel just a bit of sympathy for him, even if he's a brutal antihero. Meanwhile, the Duke's sons are buffoons with zany hair, makeup, tattoos, piercings and costumes that render them cartoonish and not remotely believable. Basically, there's a very strong story under here that's overwhelmed by Cox's affected, deeply chaotic filmmaking style. It actually looks like it was painful to make. But it's probably even more agonising to watch.