Having just carried out a particularly difficult hit in London, two hitmen seek shelter in Bruges, Belgium, only to find their views on life and death permanently altered by their interactions with the locals, the tourists, and a film crew. Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, and Ralph Fiennes star in an action comedy from director Martin McDonagh.
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Review By Derek Armstrong
By the time In Bruges
hit theaters, the accumulation of recent British gangster movies left
some viewers skeptical whether there'd be anything new here --
especially with Guy Ritchie's RocknRolla
looming on the horizon as yet another dose of the familiar. As it turns
out, setting the action in Belgium is just this film's first important
departure from the status quo. Guided by the sensibilities of an
accomplished Irish playwright, In Bruges is a deep and unexpected breath of fresh air. This is to say nothing of how Martin McDonagh's film enabled the surprise reemergence of Colin Farrell. In Bruges
provided the actor his first Golden Globe nomination and win for the
role of Ray, a small-time wisecracking hood whose botched hit follows
him to the medieval landscape of Bruges, where he and a partner (Brendan Gleeson)
await further instruction. Their relationship is peculiar to the
criminal world, where surface loyalty and a wicked camaraderie are
offset by the tense fragility of changing circumstances and the criminal
code. The two actors have great oil-and-water chemistry and some
hilarious exchanges, but the core of their relationship is the
work-related emotional burdens they share, sensitively rendered by McDonagh. Ralph Fiennes' insertion into this dynamic only increases the complexity and the fun. McDonagh's
Oscar-nominated screenplay consistently has it both ways, balancing the
silly and the serious, and managing its every clever thread with equal
aplomb. The city of Bruges, with its singular architectural scheme, sets
in motion many of the plot's wonderful oddities, unexpected turns, and
quirky characters. But its role is proportionate to McDonagh's
other fine touches, far more than gimmick, far more than pretty scenery
intended to distract the viewer. As it deconstructs the criminal mind
and examines why people do what they do, In Bruges is both funny and poignant.
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