In Bruges (2008) Review

 "I'm sorry for calling you an inanimate object.  I was upset."

-Harry Waters

After a job goes drastically wrong, two hitmen, Ray (Colin Farrell) and Ken (Brendan Gleeson), flee England to hide out in Bruges, Belgium.  While waiting for orders from their boss, Harry (Ralph Fiennes), on how to proceed, they spend most of their time sightseeing.

If you haven't seen In Bruges, please don't read any further.  It's a great movie with a lot of fun and dark twists and turns.  So go watch it for yourself and then come back and read this review.   Spoilers ahead.  You have been warned. 

What Works:

The performances really carry this movie, especially Colin Farrell.  He's a young and inexperienced hitman and has no interest in sightseeing in Bruges.  He reminds me a lot of that kid we all had in our class in elementary school.  The one who can't shut up or sit still.  Ray is like that this entire movie, but now he's hit the stage where even he knows he has gone too far and is trying to find a way to make up for that.  It's a fun performance and Farrell brings a ton of depth and emotion to a surprisingly complex role.

Brendan Gleason plays Ken, who loves spending time sightseeing in Bruges.  He also goes a great job as he reflects on his life and the stuff he has done.  He has one of my favorite moments of the movie where he tries to talk Ray out of killing himself.  Ray caused the death of a little boy and he will have to live with that for the rest of his life, but he can dedicate himself to saving the next boy.  It's a really inspiring moment.  Ken offers light in the darkest of moments and it's a line that has stuck with me for years.

Ralph Fiennes plays the movie's villain, Harry, but even he is a somewhat likable character.  His goal is to kill Ray because of the death of the little boy.  He's avenging the death of a child.  He may be presented as the villain, but he's given a goal that's completely understandable.  Not only that, he has a set of surprisingly noble principles he follows.  Yes, he's a jerk, but it's nice having a villain with depth and that we can relate to.

For a movie about child murder, suicide, and general violence, it's a really funny movie.  The script is very tight with tons of setup for often hilarious payoffs.  While the movie knows when to stop the humor for the emotional moments, it doesn't stop the funny moments for too long.  It may be extremely dark, but it still manages to be funny so you don't ever get too depressed watching it.

Finally, the 3rd act chase between Ray and Harry is a blast and clever.  At one point they stop the chase for a moment and start talking about how to proceed with the shootout so no innocents get injured.  It's a great scene and a precursor to director Martin McDonagh's next film, Seven Psychopaths.

What Sucks:

I only have one complaint with the film.  Near the end of the movie, there is a sequence where the timing makes no sense.  It starts with Ken and Harry in the stairwell of a clocktower.  A seriously injured Ken manages to crawl back up to the top of the tower, slowly stand up, jump over the side, and have a final moment with Ray before dying all before Harry manages to run down the stairs to the ground.  There is no way Ken beat Harry to the ground.  I don't buy it for one second.  I could maybe believe it if they started at the top of the tower, but they started in the stairwell.  Nope.  No way.

Verdict:

In Bruges is a wonderful black comedy with excellent performances, hilarious moments, and a creative 3rd act.  There is one sequence that could have been better, but I still love this movie and it has absolutely got it going on.

 9/10: Great