THE POPCORN REEL FILM
REVIEW/"In Bruges"
When In Bruges, Do As The Hit Men Don't
By Omar P.L. Moore/The Popcorn Reel
February 8, 2008
Hit man special: Brendan Gleeson as Ken, and Colin Farrell as Ray, two hit men on holiday in Belgium in the film "In Bruges", Martin McDonagh's feature film directing debut. (Photo courtesy: Focus Features)
When In Bruges, Do As The Hit Men Don't
By Omar P.L. Moore/The Popcorn Reel
February 8, 2008
Hit man special: Brendan Gleeson as Ken, and Colin Farrell as Ray, two hit men on holiday in Belgium in the film "In Bruges", Martin McDonagh's feature film directing debut. (Photo courtesy: Focus Features)
Martin McDonagh's feature film directing debut
is a lively and gleefully politically incorrect journey in the two-week
sojourn of two Irish hit men (one of whom is neurotic and somewhat
xenophobic) played by Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell (guess who has the
neuroses?) as they navigate Bruges. The two are sent there to get away
after an, ahem, "assignment", which alas, didn't go according to plan.
What does however, is Mr. McDonagh's screenplay, tightly-woven and filled with crackling dialogue, the kind that makes you cringe, laugh and writhe uncomfortably, all at the same time -- which is just the way that "In Bruges" a brooding comedy of light, dark and in between wants it.
What does however, is Mr. McDonagh's screenplay, tightly-woven and filled with crackling dialogue, the kind that makes you cringe, laugh and writhe uncomfortably, all at the same time -- which is just the way that "In Bruges" a brooding comedy of light, dark and in between wants it.
"In Bruges" never sells itself short by
playing it safe, and this is its greatest asset. In what other film can you
get a racist dwarf, a rules-rigorous gangster boss from London (played to
the absolute hilt by Ralph Fiennes), a pregnant hotelier, a
one-eyed henchman and a cocaine dealer who moonlights as a film production
assistant? (Not even "The Savages", "Pulp Fiction" or "Bad Santa" had this
kind of eclectic assemblage of characters. Correction: "Bad Santa" did have
Tony Cox, who is a dwarf, but whose character wasn't a racist.)
Bruges, for the record, is in Belgium, which is news to Ray (Farrell), who desperately wants to return to London. (He says at one point that "If I'd grown up on a farm and were retarded Bruges might impress me, but I didn't, so it doesn't.") Slowly the threads of the film turn in on themselves like ingrown hairs, spiking the skin of a shell that slowly cracks and devolves into the type of Peckinpah-like violence that imprints itself in the solar plexus. The film explores conundrums of race, such as dilemmas voiced by one character, who wonders whose side one would like to be on when and if a group of black dwarves and white dwarves fight each other. Ray and Ken are not your ordinary hit men. They are more beneficent than your average contract assassins. Ray shoots a would-be trouble maker with blanks when it in truth would have been easier to kill him quick and dirty.
Then again, "In Bruges" is anything but easy, and its production design by Michael Carlin is intriguing, showcasing the tall, foreboding structures that define the dangerous moments that the Belgium night offers, yet providing the beauty, serenity, splendor and innocence on a bright day. There's two Bruges, and the hit man protagonists are also deeply conflicted in their designs and motivations. It is these complex machinations in Mr. Gleeson's and especially Mr. Farrell's character that also makes Mr. McDonagh's comedy-drama especially fascinating at some junctures. While the film's ending is a bit of a let-down, it is entirely consistent with the way these eccentric characters behave. With this ending, "In Bruges" (released today in the U.S. and Canada by Focus Features) spares no sacred cows. Carter Burwell's music score is masterful, and the cinematography by Eigil Bryld adds a layer to the complexity of Mr. McDonagh's debut feature, which by itself is more than impressive.
"In Bruges" is rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America for strong bloody violence, pervasive language and some drug use. The film's duration is one hour and 47 minutes.
Copyright The Popcorn Reel. PopcornReel.com. 2008. All Rights Reserved.
Bruges, for the record, is in Belgium, which is news to Ray (Farrell), who desperately wants to return to London. (He says at one point that "If I'd grown up on a farm and were retarded Bruges might impress me, but I didn't, so it doesn't.") Slowly the threads of the film turn in on themselves like ingrown hairs, spiking the skin of a shell that slowly cracks and devolves into the type of Peckinpah-like violence that imprints itself in the solar plexus. The film explores conundrums of race, such as dilemmas voiced by one character, who wonders whose side one would like to be on when and if a group of black dwarves and white dwarves fight each other. Ray and Ken are not your ordinary hit men. They are more beneficent than your average contract assassins. Ray shoots a would-be trouble maker with blanks when it in truth would have been easier to kill him quick and dirty.
Then again, "In Bruges" is anything but easy, and its production design by Michael Carlin is intriguing, showcasing the tall, foreboding structures that define the dangerous moments that the Belgium night offers, yet providing the beauty, serenity, splendor and innocence on a bright day. There's two Bruges, and the hit man protagonists are also deeply conflicted in their designs and motivations. It is these complex machinations in Mr. Gleeson's and especially Mr. Farrell's character that also makes Mr. McDonagh's comedy-drama especially fascinating at some junctures. While the film's ending is a bit of a let-down, it is entirely consistent with the way these eccentric characters behave. With this ending, "In Bruges" (released today in the U.S. and Canada by Focus Features) spares no sacred cows. Carter Burwell's music score is masterful, and the cinematography by Eigil Bryld adds a layer to the complexity of Mr. McDonagh's debut feature, which by itself is more than impressive.
"In Bruges" is rated R by the Motion Picture Association of America for strong bloody violence, pervasive language and some drug use. The film's duration is one hour and 47 minutes.
Copyright The Popcorn Reel. PopcornReel.com. 2008. All Rights Reserved.