Film review: ‘THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN’ by Nick Gardener from ‘Built For Speed’

The Banshees Of Inisherin, the latest film from In Bruges and Three Billboards writer/director Martin McDonagh, is a beautifully shot, wonderfully acted, very quirky, if slightly uneven tragi-comedy that sits somewhere between folk tale, shaggy dog story and revenge fable.

The leads from In Bruges, Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, play two locals, Padraic and Colm, living on the fictional remote Irish island of Inisherin in 1923. Long-time drinking buddies, they have a strange falling out when Colm decides, out of the blue, that he wants nothing more to do with Padraic. The fact that Colm’s loves are music and the arts while Padraic’s is his pet donkey, may have something to do with it. As the confused Padraic seeks an explanation for Colm’s behaviour, their feud takes some strange and dark turns including self-mutilation and death threats.

While Colm and Padraic’s unusual conflict forms the centrepiece of this film, McDonagh seems just as interested in immersing us in the gritty daily life of Inisherin’s oddball community.  The assorted characters, who could almost have stepped out of How Green Was My Valley and even Joyce’s Ulysses, include Kerry Condon as Padraic’s attractive, smart but disillusioned sister Siobahn, Barry Keoghan as Padraic’s young mate Dominic who’s derided as the town simpleton but has some of the wisdom of a typical Shakespearean fool, Brid Ni Neachtian as the strange Grim Reaper-esque Mrs O’Riordan and Gary Lydon as Dominic’s obnoxious violent cop father.

Another vital character is the island itself (largely filmed on Achill Island) with its stunning verdant hills, rugged coastline and snaking walls of piled stones.  Of recent films, possibly only Terrence Malick’s A Hidden Life has made more visually arresting use of a landscape.

Like McDonagh’s previous films, Inisherin has a pervading sense of grim fatalism interspersed with odd humour and sudden, unexpected acts of violence.  It’s certainly not as gruelling or violent as Three Billboards but there are a few confronting scenes.  While often quite funny, the film’s humour won’t necessarily appeal to everyone.  Some of it is so quirky it borders on absurdist and could have come from a Harold Pinter play.

While the film succeeds as an oddball character drama and cultural snapshot, its attempts at historical reference don’t always work. The film tries to parallel the two men’s conflict with the Irish Civil War that rages across the sea on the mainland but it’s a clunky and obvious metaphor that, thankfully, McDonagh uses sparingly.

Colin Farrell isn’t always the most appealing screen presence, which is fine if he’s playing a villain but not so much when he’s meant to be the sympathetic or heroic figure.  Impressively, he bucks that trend here, giving the essentially decent Padraic humour, pathos and convincing bitterness at the rejection he’s experiencing.  Gleeson is similarly impressive, his creased face as weather-beaten as the island, he captures a man reaching for something finer and more permanent than the seemingly meaningless life he has known.

Those looking for a conventional dramatic storyline might be scratching their heads like Padraic during this film but those prepared to immerse themselves in McDonagh’s vivid and unusual world will be well-rewarded.

Nick’s rating: ****

Genre: Drama.

Classification: M.

Director(s): Martin McDonagh.

Release date: 26th Dec 2022.

Running time: 114 mins.

Reviewer: Nick Gardener can be heard on “Built For Speed” every Friday night from 8-10pm on 88.3 Southern FM.

 

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