Post by BIGFANBOY on Feb 8, 2008 6:53:15 GMT -5
IN BRUGES
Review by Gary Dean Murray
Writer Martin McDonagh has a distinction in the West End of London. He had four different plays running at the same time, a feat only accomplished by one other playwright, Big Bill Shakespeare. His first short film won the Academy Award. This maverick wordsmith is taking on the director’s seat with his first big screen work, the self-penned crime drama In Bruges. It is easily the best film of 2008 so far.
The plot is simply complicated. Starting in medias rea, our two hit men in Bruges, a medieval style village much more in tune with Disney than modern Belgium. Being there becomes an oft-overused punch line. Ray (Colin Farrell) is our young buck and Ken (Brendan Gleeson) is the seasoned vet with too much blood on hands. They are together waiting for the heat to die down in London. It seems Ray’s hit went a bit south and there is some massive repercussions in the winds. Ken is trying to enjoy the down time by visiting the local historical sights. Ray just wants to visit the pub for a pint.
Ray does get out and meets Chloe (Clemence Poesy), a stunner with a bit of a dark past. These two kindred souls do hit it off much to the chagrin of her boyfriend. They watch a movie being filmed and befriend a dwarf American actor. They also have a dinner date that turns violent with another table.
Ken gets the call from the big boss (Ralph Fiennes) with information that Ken was expecting. It is expected that Ken do a job in Bruges that he doesn’t want to do. He goes to find Ray and the two end up at a brothel with the dwarf.
All this turns to a showdown that doesn’t happen and the first of many twists. I’m doing everything I can to get you the idea behind the plot without giving away any of the plot points. It is a joy to see how each element connects to the collective whole.
As a screenwriter, Martin McDonagh cannot be beat. He crafts a tale that ties every loose end together in a perfect package with enough ambiguity to let the audience fill in their own conclusions. He twists the characters around each other in such a way that the script should be an example of how to write. He tackles themes of honor and religion, bonding and love, all in a hail of bullets. But as a director, there are some minor flaws. Some shots just do not fit together and the pacing has too much ebb and flow. There just need to be a steadier hand at the wheel.
But the performances are top notch all the way through. Ralph Fiennes seems to be having the time of his life being the gun toting big bad boss. He is sinister in a way that he has never shown before. Now, at the same time he delivers some cleaver lines, getting some lion’s share of laughs. The opening gun battle between two protagonists is cleaver in its silliness. The same goes for Brendan Gleeson. That sad eyed look he carries on his mug shows the terror of his ill chosen life. He has the precis of “that’s what I do” about everything.
Clemence Poesy is the find of 2008. Though she isn’t given much to do, she still comes across perfectly as the girl you would change your life for. In what first seems like a minor character set up as a cog to push a story point along, her character does force a change in the tone of the characters and the direction of their lives. It is simple and yet magical how she does this in the role.
But this is the Colin Ferrell show and he delivers on every level. He is funny and sad, both dark and morose. He has the weight of his conscious on his shoulders yet still keeps his back straight. He is best in roles where he is not the smartest guy in the room and here is daft to the nth degree. More roles like this one and the debacle of Alexander should be forgotten.
This is a roller coaster of a flick, something that takes you in a dozen different directions. It is roaring funny in parts and equally dark and morbid. It changes gears on itself to the point of burning out the transmission. Few films (even with their flaws) can accomplish that feat. Just on the point of giving 100% effort this little film is a must see.
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