Behind The Scenes: Brendan Gleeson, Martin McDonagh & Colin Farrell On The Set Of IN BRUGES
Sometimes all the elements align and a great movie exists because of the talent involved. In Bruges is brilliant because it was written and directed by Martin McDonagh – and it’s brilliant because it stars Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson. Without any one of those elements it might have been just good rather than brilliant.
Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson are Ray and Ken, two Irish hitmen keeping a low profile in Bruges after Ray accidentally kills a young boy when a hit goes wrong. They’re waiting to hear from their hard-nosed boss Harry (a crackling Ralph Fiennes), who plays a trigger happy gangster with a temperamental personality. However, the pair can’t seem to stay out of trouble and the plot turns and zigzags in surprising ways before packing a punch in an emotional finale.
McDonagh’s screenplay delivers in every way – the whole thing is incredibly well structured and the dialogue zings with sizzling one-liners and foulmouth rants. This entertains though it also adds a lot of wonderful characterisation to the whole thing. In lesser hands, this might have felt like a low-rent Tarantino rip-off, but playwright McDonagh is a true wordsmith, offering-up weighty themes to support the the lighter elements. In Bruges is all about faith, responsibility, brotherhood and redemption – and McDonagh is able to get this across without being heavy-handed. That’s wonderful writing.
Martin McDonagh’s In Bruges is a stone-cold cult classic. The black comedy hits the mark on all levels, the dark humour is funny and the dramatic beats are well honed and poignant
A modest hit when it was first released in 2008, In Bruges grossed $7.8 million at the US box office and $34 million globally from a $15 million budget.
