The Banshees of Inisherin
Posted: Wed Jan 04, 2023 6:13 am
If you were a fan of Martin McDonagh's In Bruges then you may well be pleased to see the two lead actors (Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson) reunited for a second outing, but in a very different film with an entirely different feel.
This time the two actors play a pair of 'friends' on an island off the coast of Ireland (and when one of them complains of his life being dull, this is pointed out with the additional comment, "What do you expect?"). The tale starts off with the relationship between the two erstwhile pals suddenly taking a difficult turn and things go down hill from there.
Being set in what, early twentieth century Ireland (or an island there off) it is inevitable that the unrest of the country and the mystical nature of the place should both feature strongly in the tale, but in some ways this is almost a fairy story without the fairies. The one person in it who sits on the border of the different worlds - fairy and real - is a frightening character, malevolent and knowing in equal measure, and not someone you would be pleased to see walking toward you in an Irish lane or anywhere else (come to that).
Now I saw one review of this film where the reviewer said that he had laughed uncontrollably for the first half of the film. I don't know what film he was watching, but it wasn't the same one as I was seeing. To me the film has an almost inevitable quality of tragedy in the waiting about it. I agree with the reviewer that the story is really about the inevitability of our mortality and the fear of passing without having left a trace, but this, while its made pretty plain, is never lingered on with long dissertations or dialectics. The story is told and it is what it is.
And what it is, is very good!
This is an uncompromising film, beautifully played by all of the actors and absolutely nailed to a tee with the settings, and it will stay with you for a long time after you have seen it. The open countryside is matched by a spareness in the dialogue where nothing is wasted, but nothing is left out either. The characters are more complex than they at first seem - especially Farrell and the rapidly rising Barry Keoghan, who's star should be watched very carefully - and they go through changes as the film develops.
But the last word must go to the unnerving 'wise woman' who's brooding presence sits over the film like a malicious vulture, orchestrating (?) from afar, events that will change the lives of the protagonists in ways they cannot imagine. Told that her predictions are "not very nice" by the bewildered Farrell character after he fails to avoid her in aforementioned country lane, she replies, "I'm not trying to be nice. I'm trying to be accurate."
This time the two actors play a pair of 'friends' on an island off the coast of Ireland (and when one of them complains of his life being dull, this is pointed out with the additional comment, "What do you expect?"). The tale starts off with the relationship between the two erstwhile pals suddenly taking a difficult turn and things go down hill from there.
Being set in what, early twentieth century Ireland (or an island there off) it is inevitable that the unrest of the country and the mystical nature of the place should both feature strongly in the tale, but in some ways this is almost a fairy story without the fairies. The one person in it who sits on the border of the different worlds - fairy and real - is a frightening character, malevolent and knowing in equal measure, and not someone you would be pleased to see walking toward you in an Irish lane or anywhere else (come to that).
Now I saw one review of this film where the reviewer said that he had laughed uncontrollably for the first half of the film. I don't know what film he was watching, but it wasn't the same one as I was seeing. To me the film has an almost inevitable quality of tragedy in the waiting about it. I agree with the reviewer that the story is really about the inevitability of our mortality and the fear of passing without having left a trace, but this, while its made pretty plain, is never lingered on with long dissertations or dialectics. The story is told and it is what it is.
And what it is, is very good!
This is an uncompromising film, beautifully played by all of the actors and absolutely nailed to a tee with the settings, and it will stay with you for a long time after you have seen it. The open countryside is matched by a spareness in the dialogue where nothing is wasted, but nothing is left out either. The characters are more complex than they at first seem - especially Farrell and the rapidly rising Barry Keoghan, who's star should be watched very carefully - and they go through changes as the film develops.
But the last word must go to the unnerving 'wise woman' who's brooding presence sits over the film like a malicious vulture, orchestrating (?) from afar, events that will change the lives of the protagonists in ways they cannot imagine. Told that her predictions are "not very nice" by the bewildered Farrell character after he fails to avoid her in aforementioned country lane, she replies, "I'm not trying to be nice. I'm trying to be accurate."