Review: In Bruges

       Many actors have the ability to play wide variety of characters very well, Meryl Streep certainly springs to mind. Other actors struggle to play roles outside of their comfort zone, yet are cast in a buch of roles because of a mass appeal that is usually attributed to their good looks. Colin Farrrell is this type of an actor. His performances in movies like Miami Vice and SWAT are stiff and uninteresting, yet he keep getting roles in those types of movies because he is so very handsome, the remake of Total Recall being his most recent flop. However, when he is allowed to relax and be his Irish self and not isn't forced to mask his thick brogue, he is a real treat to watch on screen. This is the case with the delightful action/dark comedy In Bruges.

       Colin Farrell plays Ray, an Irish hitman hiding out in Bruges, Belgium after a hit goes horribly wrong. Back in England, Ray successfully killed a priest in a confessional while confessing to him to the sin he is about to commit. Tragically, an errant bullet kills a young boy and now Ray feels depressed. Their boss (a very worried looking Ralph Fiennes) tells Ray and his partner in crime Ken (Brendan Gleeson) to take some time in off in Bruges to collect themselves. Ken enjoys Bruges greatly marveling at what he proclaims as the most well preserved medieval town in Europe. Ray on the other hand hates the town, repeatedly describing it as a shithole. In one scene Ken says that he is going to climb the tower in the middle of town to see the view, but Ray protests saying, “Why do I need to go up there to see down here? I'm already down here!” Ray meets a couple interesting characters roaming the streets of Bruges. One, an attractive girl named Chloe (The Harry Potter series' Clemence Poesy) and the other an drug addled, racist, American dwarf. The script then ingeniously brings all of these characters and plot lines together at one place and time. Leading up to this point are a number of moment sadness, goofiness, abandon, and poignancy. It plays almost like a European Pulp Fiction told in chronological order.

       Farrell is the highlight of this movie. He plays a rough and tumble Irishman so well, probably because he grew up surrounded by the very type of people he is portraying in this movie. However, the city of Bruges is a close second for top billing. The setting of the movie and scenes of sight-seeing suggest that the film is a travelogue on par with movies like Eat, Pray, Love, but the tightly written action packed plot makes it so much more. It's hard to watch this movie and not feel at least some desire to visit Belgium. Gleeson is also entertaining to watch as the older, world weary hitman working with Ray, torn between helping his friend or obeying his boss. I've already mentioned how well this screenplay is written, so I won't gush over it any more, but it is really great.