Spurple Films

Entry for June 21, 2008

My first Best Film of 2008...

I haven't seen too many really good films this year. There was Iron Man, thank god for Robert Downey Jr. And there was Forgetting Sarah Marshall, thank god for Judd Apatow for making Freaks & Geeks for discovering Jason Segel. Those were both really good films, and there are a few other that, had I seen, I'm sure I would also consider really good films, but In Bruges is the first film I've seen in this year that I would call a great one.

The film's about two hitmen who just finished a job, and are sent to Bruges by their boss to lay low for a couple of weeks. Where is Bruges? I had honestly never heard of it. It's a small, old town. It's cultural significance is it's main tourist draw, not it's entertainment value. If I went there, I don't imagine I'd have much to say while site seeing other than "Wow, that's one old building." Still, after seeing this movie, I really wanted to visit Bruges.

One of the hitman, played by Brendan Gleeson, enjoys the medieval sites and it's cultural significance, and the other, played by Colin Farrell, does not. It is made clear in the first scene that he wants to be out of Bruges as fast as possible. "If I'd grown up on a farm, and was retarded, Bruges might impress me. But I didn't, so it doesn't." Is there any accent that would make that line any funnier than Colin Farrell's natural Irish accent? I don't think so.

This movie had me in hysterics. I was really laughing out loud during many of these scenes, and I was not at all expecting to. I thought I would be giving a mild chuckle, acknowledging how clever some of these things were, but not really laughing. But I was wrong. And it's the kind of laugher that you really, really appreciate. It wasn't just a funny one liner that made me laugh, it was the nature of their conversations and actions that had me laughing. Listening to Colin Farrell ramble on about midget suicide (on a first date), and then later hearing a midget talk about the brewing war between the blacks and whites, and which side all the other ethnic groups will end up on.

And what was even better than the laughter, what kept me from calling the hilarious Sarah Marshall a great film, was that this movie is so incredibly human. What an amazing art form film is. It makes us feel sympathetic towards the people we would normally be wishing death upon. Farrell and Gleeson share a conversation about how they do try to be good people. Gleeson knows he kills people, and not always people that deserve to die, but if he sees an old woman with groceries, he knows to hold open the door for her. And it's not because he wants to look like a good person, it's because he truly tries to be a good person, even whilst being a hitman. Aren't we all like that? We may not be murderers, but don't we all do things we know are wrong? And don't we still do the things that we think are right?

Or the moment in a church, right after Farrell's first professional hit. He accidentally killed a little boy. Leaning down, he finds a note. On it are the sins the boy was ready to ask forgiveness for. The scene is quick, but what is written on that note, right down to the penmanship, almost brought me to tears.

The film was written and directed by Martin McDonagh. I knew of his first film, a short titled Six Shooter, but had only heard of it because it won the Oscar a couple years ago. I haven't seen it, but I am now definitely going to. This is a man who knows how to write a great story. A lot of people know what makes a great story, and ironically enough that knowledge of what makes a great story holds them back, because too often they try to replicate what was already done. It's what gives us cliches. What happens in this film can't be considered plot twists, but the things are so new that they almost feel like them. Despite how simply you can describe this story, you can not guess where it is going. Everything that happened was a surprise, and as I watched it I sadly thought that I would never be able to see this film for the first time again.

2008-06-22 06:27:57 GMT

Comments (1 total)

Author:Anonymous

Agreed completely. Fantastic film.
--ToastedBagel

2008-07-26 11:14:22 GMT

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		All the shit I've ever wanted to say about movies...

		Entry for June 21, 2008 My first Best Film of 2008... I haven't seen too many really good films this year. There was Iron Man, thank god for Robert Downey Jr. And there was Forgetting Sarah Marshall, thank god for Judd Apatow for making Freaks & Geeks for discovering Jason Segel. Those were both really good films, and there are a few other that, had I seen, I'm sure I would also consider really good films, but In Bruges is the first film I've seen in this year that I would call a great one. The film's about two hitmen who just finished a job, and are sent to Bruges by their boss to lay low for a couple of weeks. Where is Bruges? I had honestly never heard of it. It's a small, old town. It's cultural significance is it's main tourist draw, not it's entertainment value. If I went there, I don't imagine I'd have much to say while site seeing other than "Wow, that's one old building." Still, after seeing this movie, I really wanted to visit Bruges. One of the hitman, played by Brendan Gleeson, enjoys the medieval sites and it's cultural significance, and the other, played by Colin Farrell, does not. It is made clear in the first scene that he wants to be out of Bruges as fast as possible. "If I'd grown up on a farm, and was retarded, Bruges might impress me. But I didn't, so it doesn't." Is there any accent that would make that line any funnier than Colin Farrell's natural Irish accent? I don't think so. This movie had me in hysterics. I was really laughing out loud during many of these scenes, and I was not at all expecting to. I thought I would be giving a mild chuckle, acknowledging how clever some of these things were, but not really laughing. But I was wrong. And it's the kind of laugher that you really, really appreciate. It wasn't just a funny one liner that made me laugh, it was the nature of their conversations and actions that had me laughing. Listening to Colin Farrell ramble on about midget suicide (on a first date), and then later hearing a midget talk about the brewing war between the blacks and whites, and which side all the other ethnic groups will end up on. And what was even better than the laughter, what kept me from calling the hilarious Sarah Marshall a great film, was that this movie is so incredibly human. What an amazing art form film is. It makes us feel sympathetic towards the people we would normally be wishing death upon. Farrell and Gleeson share a conversation about how they do try to be good people. Gleeson knows he kills people, and not always people that deserve to die, but if he sees an old woman with groceries, he knows to hold open the door for her. And it's not because he wants to look like a good person, it's because he truly tries to be a good person, even whilst being a hitman. Aren't we all like that? We may not be murderers, but don't we all do things we know are wrong? And don't we still do the things that we think are right? Or the moment in a church, right after Farrell's first professional hit. He accidentally killed a little boy. Leaning down, he finds a note. On it are the sins the boy was ready to ask forgiveness for. The scene is quick, but what is written on that note, right down to the penmanship, almost brought me to tears. The film was written and directed by Martin McDonagh. I knew of his first film, a short titled Six Shooter, but had only heard of it because it won the Oscar a couple years ago. I haven't seen it, but I am now definitely going to. This is a man who knows how to write a great story. A lot of people know what makes a great story, and ironically enough that knowledge of what makes a great story holds them back, because too often they try to replicate what was already done. It's what gives us cliches. What happens in this film can't be considered plot twists, but the things are so new that they almost feel like them. Despite how simply you can describe this story, you can not guess where it is going. Everything that happened was a surprise, and as I watched it I sadly thought that I would never be able to see this film for the first time again. 2008-06-22 06:27:57 GMT Comments (1 total) Author:Anonymous Agreed completely. Fantastic film. --ToastedBagel 2008-07-26 11:14:22 GMT Site Home