Movie Man Darian Watching All Night Long

The Banshees Of Inisherin

This is one of the best films I’ve seen this year! Now anything attached with Martin McDonagh’s name to it is something I always get excited about because the man is a genius writer and truly outstanding filmmaker I’ve been watching his films since Seven Psychopaths and then what he gave us a couple years ago with Three Billboards was incredible. So whenever I hear a new film of his is released it’s something I will run to theatres to go see and what he accomplished with The Banshees Of Inisherin is truly spectacular as it’s a very simplistic narrative but layered with so much depth and emotion led by two truly amazing performances by Colin Farrell and Brendon Gleeson. It is a story about friendship, and where silence clashes with noise it’s is funny, heartfelt and a damn enjoyable film. 

Firstly, The style and feel of this film is very much what you’d expect from Martin McDonagh as he injects his films with dark humour and wrapped around a strong sense of drama that is incredibly structured. As he likes showing very stylistic characters with witty dialogue as he did that with In Bruges, Seven Psychopaths and Three Billboards. So to see him have a story that’s very simplistic in narrative was interesting as his style is very complex in terms of plot and to have a film that solely focuses on just the main narrative and nothing else it was  different for him in a style sense and directing aspect as well which I found fantastic honestly as some people aren’t a fan of how straight forward the story is but I find that very engaging and fun to explore. Because the film’s premises is about a man who one day just Does not want to be friends with him anymore and is their any other side plots no their isn’t it’s that simple and he explores the themes within that narrative of this now strained friendship and as the viewer he doesn’t explain everything to you he wants you to figure it out for yourself and so theirs lots of things you can interpret for yourself which I enjoyed. Because the whole point he’s trying to make with the two characters is Colin Farrell is very comedic and loud in sense of his character he plays and Brendon Gleeson’s is very reserved and quiet and that’s what the film is trying to show is a battle between quiet and loud and it works amazingly well. So the execution of the story results in very funny moments for the characters but their also is a great deal of heart and emotion that you can feel through the film and it’s characters. It is brilliant with how layered it’s narrative is and how the film explores the depths of these two characters such a well written film the way this film unfolds will have you so engaged from start to finish. 

Secondly, The performances are amazing! Now I think these are my favourite performances from both actors Colin Farrell and Brendon Gleeson as Farrell shines as this innocent happy guy who is struck with being told someone doesn’t want to be his friend anymore. He brings a lot of comedy to the performance but also great dramatic weight that melds well together as he is desperate for answers of why he won’t talk to him and it’s done in a way that sure has funny moments but comes out of a place of heartache and Colin delivers a damn strong performance that will have you absolutely amazed. Then you have Brendon Gleeson who is very reserved with his performance and it’s so damn good because we don’t know to much about this guy except that he wants to be left alone and that sense of mystery makes him so interesting to learn about because he plays things so close to the chest. The way he brings such emotion to the delivery of his dialogue ripples through the frame in such a terrific way. He also can give some genuinely well earned funny moments that aren’t straight up comedic but very dry with humour and he executes that so well too. He has this intimidating aspect to him he uses onscreen that just chews the scenery he incredible in this film. Then theirs also Barry Keoghan who plays this very goofy but also lovable character that means well but is made to be the joke in every conversation and the way he springs him to life is so fun to watch. As he wears his heart on his sleeve and you can see the person he plays means well he’s just not the best with socializing with others and that’s why he has very little friends it’s a very funny but yet pure performance that was amazingly brought to life from Barry. Overall everyone in this film have such strong performances but it’s Colin and Brendon that steal the show both giving career best performances. 

Lastly, The Banshees Of Inisherin is one of the best films of the year! It again is another brilliant film by Martin McDonagh who blends that perfect mix of dark humour and drama so well. Here he takes a plot that’s very simplistic and just explores the deep rooted themes within in it and it’s honesty brilliant the way he wrote and directed this film. It’s one of his strongest character driven films I’ve ever seen and will have you laughing and crying throughout this film. On top of the truly great performance from its entire cast this film packs humour heart and drama in a truly outstanding film that will have you wanting to see it again and again. I recommend everyone go see this film. 

This film centres around two friends one of which one day abruptly stops talking to him and doesn’t want to be friends anymore and so he tries to figure out why he won’t talk to him

Rated R : Some Violent Content|Language Throughout|Brief Graphic Nudity

Colin Farrell : This is Farrell’s greatest onscreen performance! Now I’ve seen a ton of his films from The Lobster, The Gentleman, The Batman and Widows to name a few. Now he’s incredible at showing his comedic side within his characters but his ability to also show fantastic gut wrenching emotion he also can tap into well and that’s what he brings outstandingly well to this film. He plays this lovable goof in a sense with a heart of gold and I say that as a compliment. As this film takes place in 1920’s Ireland and the setting of the film definitely is a big factor to why his character is the way he is. As since it’s during a time when their isn’t much to do but go for a pint with your buddy at the pub or go for a walk loosing a friend during that time in history would be devastating and the impact it has on Farrell’s character is huge. Because the moment he finds out his friend wants nothing to do with him out of the blue he tries to his best to figure out why that is and it can result in very funny situations and conversations which it does at times and when those moments arise the comedic timing from Colin is perfect giving pitch perfect delivery with his dialogue which earns fantastic laughs. But the film also for a good chunk of it is quite dramatic in terms of his arc because you can see how sad he is due to the situation he’s dealing with and as the film progresses you see him go from denial, desperation to anger and we see him evolve and change as a person due to what his friend is putting him through. Their is a part of you that wants to hug him because you can see his heart break inside of him even when he doesn’t say anything as his eyes swell up and just tries to not let anyone know how truly shattered he is inside and Farrell bringing that emotional tug and war within himself was brilliant as when he speaks every word lands on the screen with such raw emotional weight you can feel through the tone of his voice or from his body language. Seeing him tap into so many sides of this character and explore each single one of them was amazing and as he plays this tragic character who just wants his friend to talk to him and seeing that sadness adapt into anger and desperation was very interesting to see as Collin knocks it out of the park with his leading performance that will have you entertained, laughing at times and even maybe shedding a tear at how this character will genuinely touch your heart in what I think is his best performance he’s ever given onscreen. 

Brendon Gleeson : Gleeson gives a very reserved brilliant performance that will give you chills! Brendon Gleeson let me just say is one of the most underrated actors working today as he gives such solid performances that very rarely get the recognition that he should get. So to see people really paying attention to his great work in this film does make me happy because what he brings to his character in this fantastic dark comedy drama is so freaking good. As he plays the silence to the loudness of Farrell’s character and in a way it’s a emotional tennis match these guys play as their very polar opposites within how their characters are structured. As he is the friend that lights the match to all the madness that does eventually reach violent means by the third act but it’s what he does that causes all the madness in this small town. As he threatens to cut his fingers off with shears every time that Colin’s character tries to talk to him and then as the film progresses we see how he doesn’t mean to kid around he warned him and their are very shocking results you see  arise from Brendon Gleeson’s character that will have your jaw firmly on the floor. He is very calm and collected throughout the whole film their isn’t a moment where he screams but he is unpredictable in how he will get his point across and to a extent is terrifying and he plays with that unpredictable intimidation so greatly you cannot look away from what he’s bringing to the screen. He speaks very bluntly to Colin Farrell’s character in why he doesn’t want to be friends with him no longer and the cutthroat way he speaks to him Pierces your heart and he packs such dry wit and honesty to his delivery. Yes his character is reserved and very kept to himself but when he does speak the things he says and how he says them will have you totally mesmerized he brings his A game giving his greatest performance of his career. 

Martin McDonagh : McDonagh has delivered another knockout directed film with the Banshees Of Inisherin which is another fantastically well rounded and engaging film that draws you in from the first frame. He as I’ve mentioned loves to mix dark humour and drama and here he does it once again in such a simplistic but yet emotional way. As sure theirs laughs in the film but here I feel he expresses a lot of those comedic moments through Colin Farrell’s heartache as those moments feel very raw with emotion because Martin knows when to let the comedy flow through the dramatic scenes and when to hold back and let the heavy weight of the moment speak for itself and his sense of timing of those two things are so well balanced. Because the friction between these two characters to each other is very serious but the way he makes the audience see it is very comedic at times because of how dramatic it may seem to someone from the outside looking in but he also can examine how damaging that would be to one’s heart and that’s why the sheer depth he explores with the two characters at the focus of the film is so greatly written and presented. And with his past films like Three billboards that was a picture where he explored themes of grief, racism and overcoming anger and mixed with some comedic moments for sure but he didn’t hold back with exploring the deeper themes tho and that’s exactly what he does here. He shows how loosing a friendship in 1920’s Ireland would be that damaging to one’s heart and the ripple effect it would have because theirs not much to do around the town. And he also tackles what lengths would you go to make your point across to someone to stop talking to them what drastic measures would you do and he shows that in sometimes very shocking ways. He never lets the comedic beats override the deeper themes theirs a even balance and it’s one of his strongest narrative films with some of the best well written characters he’s ever put to screen Martin McDonagh delivers another brilliant film with razor sharp writing and truly incredible direction giving so much heart humour with great twists and turns.