REMEMBER Hot Fuzz, the hit movie of a couple of years back?
We have an Irish version on screens from Friday in The Guard, a tale of murder, drug trafficking, blackmail and rural police corruption.
At the heart of it all is Brendan Gleeson, who gives one of his best performances to date in the role of Sgt Gerry O’ Boyle, a disillusioned Galway-based policeman.
Starring opposite him is Don Cheadle as the FBI agent Wendall Everett, sent to Ireland from the States to oversee drug trafficking.
Cheadle also produced.
Watch out, too, for Pat Shortt, as Colum Hennessy.
Shown at the Edinburgh and Sundance Festivals, The Guard was described by one critic as an Irish pot of comedy gold.
In a recent column, I was critical of local audiences for their lack of support for Irish films.. wait for the credits and you’ll appreciate the on-screen and the behind -the-scenes talent in this little country.
Mention talent within families! The Guard, was scripted and directed by newcomer John Michael McDonagh, brother of Martin McDonagh, ‘In Bruges’ director, and executive producer for this film.
In Bruges was, of course, another Gleeson vehicle. This is ultimately O’Boyle’s story. As he struggles to garner back from life the purpose years of meaningless work in a barren town has taken, McDonagh captures excellently the resilience of an Irish culture still recovering from imperial rule.
The opening scene does a great job of introducing the audience to the character Sergeant Boyle as he witness a car of teens high on drugs flip over and proceeds to pick up a tab of LSD and pop it in his mouth.
From here on out, the Irish humour takes off, as Gleeson must investigate an atypical murder in the usually quiet region of Ireland that he surveys
