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Plot:
Bruges (pronounced "broozh"), the most well-preserved medieval city in the whole of Belgium, is a welcoming destination for travelers from all over the world. But for hit men Ray (Colin Farrell) and K...( read more 
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Recent Reviews
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MCT:August 27, 2008Waht a crazy, kinda funny disturbing movie, the middle drug part of the movie lost me, other than that very well acted
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MCT:August 27, 2008
What a film!
The dialogue and chemistry between Farrell and Gleeson is perfect.
Ralph Fiennes puts in a maginificent performance too.
This is a full price movie. -
MCT:August 26, 2008
I really enjoyed this film. I'm not the greatest Farrell fan but he really did a fantastic job here. Funny and pretty intense..especially towards the end.
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MCT:August 26, 2008
The setting and style of this movie is absolutely perfect for the dark comedy strewn throughout. The acting is great all around and the story is bleak.
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MCT:August 26, 2008In Bruges is not for everyone. Like its characters, it?s unruly, foul-mouthed and has a weird sense of humour and no concept of good behaviour. But even if those caveats whet your appetite, there?s another hurdle to overcome: the dread phrase ?British gangster movie?. In America, Martin McDonagh?s genre-stretching film already made a cautious bow at the box office, alienating some higher-brow critics who sniffed at its wayward and irresponsible tone but finding a surprising amount of support from grassroots cinemagoers, despite a very limited release.
It?s a strange film. Going into it, there are all kinds of questions you might be asking yourself - isn?t this just Sexy Beast meets Pulp Fiction? Isn?t Brendan Gleeson a bit above this kind of thing? What is Colin Farrell famous for anyway? - but, coming out, all that remains are the positives. In fact, one online review - posted on Metacritic.com by user ?Kristina? - accidentally nails its perverse charm while trying to slam it. ?Bad acting, unlikeable and underdeveloped characters, bizarre and stupid situations, too much blood, ridiculous ending,? she raged. But it wasn?t all bad news. ?My husband and I were both disappointed in this movie,? she concluded, ?but the one good thing about it was that we learned something about Bruges and would like to visit there someday.?
This barbed compliment would no doubt amuse writer-director McDonagh, and, more to the point, sounds like something one of his characters might say. Once you?ve seen the film (and you must, even if just to disagree with this very, very positive review) hopefully it?ll amuse you too, thinking of the individual who fidgeted and tutted through 100 minutes of swearing, violence and profane epistemology - not to mention rampant class-A drug and dwarf abuse - and after all that still fancied a nice city break. It?s fittingly bathetic too, because, though it superficially takes place in the same cartoon underworld as Lock, Stock and its offspring, In Bruges has more in common with a Mike Leigh film than any of Guy Ritchie?s.
Part of the reason for this is that McDonagh?s background, like Leigh?s, is in theatre, which explains both In Bruges? weakness and strengths. Like a good stage play, McDonagh?s film explores character through dialogue as well as action, and though this makes it somewhat static - even taking into consideration its frenzied, blood-spattered showdown - In Bruges is able to sneak in some heavyweight questions under the radar.
Though it speaks of contract-killing and cocaine-dealing, scoring and whoring, this surprisingly thoughtful film leaves plenty of ideas to be mulled over later, particularly those involving notions of audience identification. In Bruges is a film no Hollywood studio would ever make; it?s a film in which not one single foregrounded character - even the duplicitous love interest (the otherwise adorable Poésy) - is worthy of our sympathy, but by its enigmatic ending it has us, if not cheering them on, then definitely accepting them, and maybe even feeling genuine, if misplaced, affection for them.
The key line arrives a little way into the movie. Ray and Ken have arrived in Bruges and, while Ken is enjoying the majesty of the local architecture, Ray is behaving like a petulant teen. ?If I?d grown up on a farm and was retarded, Bruges might impress me,? he sulks. ?But I didn?t, so it doesn?t.? Though funny, this kind of banter isn?t exactly new in the general field of gangster movies, let alone the UK kind or its rarefied fish-out-of-water subgenre (see - or rather don?t - the Brighton-set Circus). However, when Ray looks across the town?s cobbled courtyard, where a camera crew is shooting, the film gets a much-needed jolt. Diverting from the smart-arse blueprint, Ray suddenly becomes a child again, his face melting with delight. ?They?re filming midgets!? he squeals.
Here, we enter the first of the film?s carefully laid minefields. The politics of the vertically challenged are as complex as they?ve ever been, so without wishing to offend people of size, we?ll stick with the film?s terminology for now (although Ray is told that ?midgets? prefer the word ?dwarf?). Jimmy, the ?little fella? being filmed - an incredibly game Jordan Prentice, whose early starring role in Howard The Duck (1986) suggests that he may actually be physically incapable of embarrassment - is a curveball thrown so elegantly by McDonagh that his fall from grace coincides smoothly with our growing fondness for Ray and Ken. During the film?s hilarious lads?-night-out scene, it takes us a while to realise that Jimmy, even to those who saw Peter Dinklage?s unsentimental performance in The Station Agent, isn?t just some afflicted victim to be pitied, he?s a flesh-and-blood guy like everyone else. And he?s a total arse.
Of the central pair, at first we?re drawn to the avuncular Ken rather than the goofy, irritating Ray. But once his terrible secret is revealed, Ray suddenly seems more vulnerable, perhaps even more romantic, than his thug shell suggests. It?s partly in the writing, but more importantly it?s in Colin Farrell?s sad, scared eyes, in a performance that reminds us that he actually hasn?t really had a chance to do much of this kind of thing over the past eight years or so. He?s joined armies and led them, played US cops and robbers, but with the exception of 2003?s Intermission he hasn?t done a human comedy, let alone the black kind, and the results here suggest he ought to do quite a bit more.
But Farrell isn?t carrying this engagingly digressive caper alone, and Gleeson makes the perfect foil, simultaneously despairing of, and caring for, his troubled, trigger-happy sidekick. While Farrell fits the stereotypical profile of the hip young gunslinger, Gleeson is the very antithesis, but just when you?re getting used to this offbeat casting, McDonagh plays his trump card. If you haven?t seen Ben Kingsley in Sexy Beast, the payoff will be more effective, but even if you have, Ralph Fiennes? performance as grouchy crime boss Harry is still something to be savoured. With a Peter Cook drawl and dressed in Essex slacks and slip-ons, Harry is the true snake amid this already unsavoury ensemble, phoning Ken with his secret mission in Bruges while Ray is supposedly in the toilet (?Is he having a poo or a wee?? the oily Harry rather creepily asks).
With its three protagonists in place, In Bruges begins its frantic final act, which is where some of its artfully packed contents start to spill out, and the simple pleasures of its character studies give way to overexcited intrigue, tragedy and an inevitable climactic shoot-out. Still, this is a minor gripe about a film which takes a genre that shouldn?t be allowed any more, never mind encouraged, and fashions something provocative and original in its thinking.
Despite some deliberate nods to medieval theosophy, and a coda that?s more arthouse than grindhouse, In Bruges isn?t exactly Samuel Beckett?s Get Carter - let?s face it, if Samuel Beckett had written Get Carter, Carter wouldn?t have turned up, would he? But to fill that existential gap, both literally and figuratively, this savvy, punk-rock pistol opera will do very nicely indeed. -
MCT:August 25, 2008Smart-alecky comedy, snarkily sadistic and show-offily written; Gleeson provides many of the good moments.
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MCT:August 25, 2008
I'm not at all fan of Colin Farrell, but just after few shots I new I had to see this one. It was hilarious for most part, occasionally sad, beautiful and proved really worth seeing.
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MCT:August 25, 2008
I knew it wasn't going to be hilarious and it wasn't but not horrible. Live Ralph Fiennes and Colin Farrell.
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MCT:August 25, 2008
I loved this movie. It was funny, dark, satirical, and very touchingly human. Acting was top notch, my favorite roll to date for Colin Farrell. Although, not very PC, I would recommend it to many many people.
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MCT:August 24, 2008
Do not let the trailer fool you, this is a good movie. The dark horse in the comedy genre. To enjoy this movie it will require: a dark and sarcastic sense of humor. Farrell et al. are great and show the deep dynamics of so-called "gangsters'" inter-selves.
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MCT:August 24, 2008
This is the first colin Farrell movie I've seen and he is surprisingly good, I thought he was only action, but he is good in this comic role aswell. Assasins are people too. Great movie.
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MCT:August 24, 2008
Surprisingly good for a movie set in Belgium :p
Feels like a cross between a David Mamet movie and a Guy Ritchie crime caper. With a quiet air of desperation the movie slowly creeps to it's inevitable conclusion. The three main leads excel portraying delightfully human gangsters, -
MCT:August 22, 2008
I found it very entertaining. It really kept my attention through out and I may now be a Collin fan.
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MCT:August 22, 2008The weirdest thing about this movie is that it's very dramatic but make you laugh every single line !
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MCT:August 20, 2008
Oh, Colin, Colin, how I love thy brooding nature and accent. But enough about that. In Bruges is an entertaining movie about hit men with souls full of funny one-liners and situations and a nice twist at the end.
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MCT:August 20, 2008
It starts off very slow
But, boy once it gets rolling
the movie begins to unfold.
Actually quite brilliant, I love hitmen so it's always fascinating to see and get inside the mind of two of them.
It's a great dark comedy. -
MCT:August 17, 2008
The trailer for this film would suggest fair like 2007's Shoot 'Em blood bath with a bit dark sense of humor. Instead, this film is totally different. No fast killing starts off this film, but a bit of profanity and a strangely tortured main character named Ray, who is supposedly a hit man. Things do not become crystal clear until about midway and then things take off crescendos to a slam-bang finish full of blood, but that is not what makes the film. What makes the film is its bitingly sharp sense of black humor where characters are mean to those around them trying to get away from their own problems. I never thought I would come away impressed by a Colin Farrell film, but this film made me immensely mirthful and laugh hard than I have for a while over this winter season of films. It is sad, but has a nice message packaged inside, which takes its time to get to the surface.
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MCT:August 16, 2008
If more people had seen this movie (well, it seems like 95% of my friends list on netflix and flixster already did), it would probably be quoted a hell of a lot more.
I really loved Ralph Fiennes and Brendan Gleeson's scenes. The humor is great (racism *heart*) and the violence isn't gratuitous but enough to wince at. -
MCT:August 16, 2008
I liked everything about this movie The main storyline, the characters, the scrip, the atmosphere , acting,... and I also liked the symbolism in it purgatory,heaven & hell
there are a few flaws & unconvincing moments but I don't care -
MCT:August 16, 2008Looking back now I find the trailer for this film to be a bit misleading. Yes, the movie has its funny parts, some of the dialoges are even outright hilarious. To promote it as a gangster comedy, like you could do with Guy Richie's films for example, doesn't exactly do it justice though. The general mood of this film is deeply melancholic, the soundtrack and the beautiful, unusual setting of Bruges make sure of that. The city almost becomes another main character with its unique atmosphere. The acting is top notch, especially by Gleeson and Fiennes, who is creating a very unusual villain character. Merely Ferrell's expressions feel a bit over the top sometimes. The script is smart and enthralling. Only the ending made me feel a little let down and could have been a lot more surprising. Still, definitely worth seeing.
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MCT:August 15, 2008
I did not expect much from this movie. I'd pretty much given up on Colin Farrell, but the fact that the brilliant Brendan Gleeson and more brilliant (or at least more handsome) Ralph Fiennes were involved urged me to pick up this DVD. I happened to watch this film alone, and it is one of the rare ones that I actually laughed out loud throughout (much to the dismay of my cat, who was sure I was losing my mind, finally.) This movie is black comedy at its blackest--and funniest. Ray (Farrell) and Ken (Gleeson) are hitmen working for Harry (Fiennes). On his first hit (on a priest, no less), Ray accidentally kills a 6-year-old boy. Harry has Ken take Ray to hide out in Bruges, Belgium, which is an authentic medieval town, without even a bowling alley for entertainment. Ken and Ray have almost a father-son relationship and spend their time waxing philosophical about the spiritual ramifications of their livelihood. The story builds to the climax as Harry reveals that he intends to have Ken kill Ray because, accidental or not, Harry sees the death of the small boy as an unforgivable sin. Throw in some drugs, prostitutes, and a midget (and an incredible number of uses of 4-letter-words that only Irishmen can pull off), and you have one of the funniest tragedies I've seen in a long time.
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MCT:August 15, 2008
Ray: "What are they doing over there? They're filming something. They're filming midgets!
Ken: Ray...
[Ray runs off and watches Jimmy being instructed by the director, who Jimmy flicks off as soon as he leaves]
Ken: Ray, come on. Let's go.
Ray: Fuck off, Ken. They're filming midgets."
Bruges, the most well-preserved medieval city in the whole of Belgium, is a welcoming destination for travellers from all over the world. But for hit men Ray and Ken, it could be their final destination; a difficult job has resulted in the pair being ordered right before Christmas by their London boss Harry to go and cool their heels in the storybook Flemish city for a couple of weeks. Very much out of place amidst the gothic architecture, canals, and cobbled streets, the two hit men fill their days living the lives of tourists. Ray, still haunted by the bloodshed in London, hates the place, while Ken, even as he keeps a fatherly eye on Ray's often profanely funny exploits, finds his mind and soul being expanded by the beauty and serenity of the city. But the longer they stay waiting for Harry's call, the more surreal their experience becomes, as they find themselves in weird encounters with locals, tourists, violent medieval art, a dwarf American actor shooting a European art film, Dutch prostitutes, and a potential romance for Ray in the form of Chloë, who may have some dark secrets of her own. And when the call from Harry does finally come, Ken and Ray's vacation becomes a life-and-death struggle of darkly comic proportions and surprisingly emotional consequences.
Ken: "We shall strike a balance between culture and fun.
Ray: Somehow I believe, Ken, that the balance shall tip in the favor of culture, like a big fat fucking retarded fucking black girl on a see-saw opposite...a dwarf."
Helping to maintain that balance are the strong central performances from Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson. Taken separately, their work here is highly impressive is Farrell nails the quicksilver mood changes of his character and turns in one of the strongest turns of his career and Gleeson, while having the less overtly flashy role, anchors the entire story with the kind of grave and quiet demeanor that says more than mere words ever could. However, as good as they are on their own, they are even better when they are playing off of each other the two are perfectly in sync with each other right from the start and their double act is alternately hilarious and strangely touching to behold.
Policeman: [to Ray, who is trying to escape from Bruges on the train] "Are you Irish?
Ray: Yea.
Policeman: What is your name?
Ray: Er-Derek Fer... ler.
Policeman: You eet the Canadian.
Ray: What?
Policeman: You eet the Canadian.
Ray: I eat the Canadian? I don't know what you're talking about.
[the policeman motions down the compartment toward more policemen and the two Canadian tourists whom Ray beat up earlier]
Canadian Guy: That's the motherfucker!
Policeman: Come along. We are taking you back to Bruges.
Ray: Brilliant."
Instead of sticking with this basic plot and trying to stretch it out into an entire film, he deploys that particular twist from earlier in the proceedings and thereby frees his story to go off in any number of unexpected directions. Other advantage is that it frees the film to go off on any number of amusingly oddball tangents, there is an especially funny sequence in which the aforementioned dwarf turns up in a drug haze to clumsily advocate a race war that he hasn't quite thought all the way through and while it doesn't really push the story forward in any significant way. There is quite a bit more to In Bruges than these hitmen nattering on about the town and their comic interactions with locals, ranging from charming drug dealers to a dwarf American actor, and it's in Ray's occasional bursts of frightful sadness that it starts to come out. McDonagh starts teasing away the layers to the characters' pasts, the real reasons why they've come to Bruges, and the judgment that awaits once they get that call from Harry.
Ken: [Ray walks into the bar high on cocaine] "How was your date?
Ray: Well, it started off with me bein' thrown out of a restaurant for pickin' a fight, then leading up to the young miss's hand on me cock, but then gettin' interrupted by her skinhead boyfriend, so on average I'd say it went fine."
My Friends Said...
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Comments
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MaydayKoigoposted 74 days ago -
A friendof mine & myself last night decided to go see a film, with no plans in mind of what to see.
After both quashing each others first couple choices, we agreed on this, since neither of us had any idea what it was about, but both said "Colin Farrell, cant be that bad".
What it was, was the BEST movie I have seen in a longtime that I had no expectations about. Funny as hell. Serious at the same time. It had midgets (uhh, dwarves), hookers, conmen/conwomen, hitmen, and so much more. It was random froms tart to end, but tied the whole package together well at the end. Comedic genius.
I cant figure out who the people are that have this down to only 3.5 stars, but they clearly are too politically correct to find ANYTHING funny, and thus hated this, because it does manage to poke fun at probably every race imaginable. But you still laugh when you heaqr it, because the delivery was great.
AA+++posted 191 days ago -
I SAW THE TRAILER AND IT LOOKED SOO FUNNY. I WANNA SEE IT. COLIN FARRELL HOTTTT.
posted 200 days ago -
Official sites for In Bruges (2008)
http://www.filminfocus.com/focus-movies/in-bruges/movie-splash.phpposted 204 days ago -
I was on the set. This film is frickin' awesome. Everybody better go see it.
posted 221 days ago -
i lived in bruges for 2 years and its not a stupid city !
but good movie i think .. but its not a stupid city !!!!!! :pposted 228 days ago
