A #@&%ing Great Time!!

Rating: 7/10 (12 August 2008)

I have to start this one off by saying this isn't a movie to take home for Grandma to enjoy. In Bruges starring Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson and Ralph Fiennes is a well played dark comedy for those who relish the poetic use of obscenities. It is a filth-laden film that unapologetically abuses every word your mom wishes wasn't in the dictionary. When watching this movie you are quick to realize that the over use of foul language is simply one aspect of the comedy that writer/director Martin McDonagh uses as a niche to carve out his piece of the film world. For me, this was just the tip of all the fun In Bruges has to offer.
Winner of an Academy Award in 2006 for his short film Six Shooter (also starring Gleeson), celebrated British playwright McDonagh's first feature length film is hopefully a glimpse into a bright future of film-making. For In Bruges, much like Six Shooter, McDonagh uses his writing talents to tell a comical story through a dark and twisted sense of humor. In addition, with a shock of ultra violence within a not too violent film, it is sure to make all fans of foul words and blood scream for joy.
It is difficult to offer a comparison for In Bruges, such as if you like that one, you'll like this one sort of thing. I would however put it in the same genre as Tarantino films, Guy Ritchie's Snatch and Lock, Stock, & Two Smoking Barrels, Boondock Saints, and Very Bad Things. This whole genre of modern day melodramas are films that use a bit of extreme violence with extreme language all perpetuated by extremely bad decisions. Then, to top it all off we the audience are meant to view these things as a comedy. I love it! The story of In Bruges is of two hit men (Farrell and Gleeson) that are sent to the city of Bruges in Belgium to sit tight and await new orders from their boss (played by Fiennes). Bruges is a simple historic little town, and no place for the likes of these two. A skewed view of a code of honor places the two hit men in a violent battle with their employer, and when the past catches up with them the mayhem ensues.
Again, this film isn't for everyone. A person near and dear to me said it best: "some people just can't see past the #@%&". If you're lucky enough to qualify as being not one of these people, then run out and get your copy of In Bruges today, and #@%&ing enjoy it!