Written And Directed by John Michael McDonagh
Everett: "You have anybody you want me to call?"
Boyle: "Nah, I don't have anybody. Just pin a medal on my body like those boys coming home from Iraq."
Everett: "Fuck you again Sergeant."
Catching up with more Irish movies this month, would you believe this one was a first time watch? No, seriously. I only watched it for the first time last night and I nearly burst my sides laughing.
Brendan Gleeson has given many a career best performance (and long may he do so) but pairing him with Don Cheadle might be one of the most genius double acts to happen. They're the perfect combination of chalk and cheese and bring out the best in each other.
With Gleeson, he's playing Sergeant Gerry Boyle. The character's coarse, vulgar, rude, a tad racist but also surprisingly sympathetic, savvy and quick on the draw when people least expect him to be. The things Gerry would say rightfully cause offend but it's really hard not to root for the guy.
He's got a sick mother, Eileen (Fionnuala Flanagan) who brought out his softer side. Her death also caused quite the blow to him, though it happened off screen. Gerry's also got a soft spot for the ladies as his escapades with two prostitutes resulted in a blackmail. He was more angered about one of them being physically assaulted than he was about being blackmailed by the villains of the piece.
Gerry also felt sadness for the widow (Katarina Čas) for the closeted Garda Aidan McBride (Rory Keenan). The latter was murdered at the behest of crime boss, Francis Sheehy-Skeffington (Liam Cunningham) and his cohorts Clive Cornell (Mark Strong) and the unhinged Liam O'Leary (David Wilmot). The way that Gerry dealt with them all was particularly brutal but deserved.
Circling back to Don Cheadle, his character FBI Agent Wendell Everett was the straight man in this buddy cop dynamic. He was certainly appalled, perplexed and even admiring the utterly batshit antics of Boyle. I absolutely loved their scenes together.
- Gabriela (McBride's widow) was from Croatia. She wasn't shocked by the fact that her husband was gay. Boyle pointed out that Croatia had good football players.
- Boyle was an expert swimmer, which came in handy for how this movie ended the character.
- Standout music: There's a good use of traditional songs and artists such as N.E.R.D. to boot.
- Chronology: Set predominantly in Connemara but Everett was also from Wisconsin.
The Guard was an absolute riot of a movie. Hysterically funny from start to finish and with an incredible double act from Brendan Gleeson and Don Cheadle. Not exactly politically correct mind you.
Rating: 8 out of 10
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