IN BRUGES

"It's a bit like supporting Tottenham then"

After been ordered to lay low after a hit goes disastrously wrong, Ray (Farrell) and Ken (Gleeson) think they might be hiding out in North London or even as far away as Coventry but instead their boss send them to Bruges, Belgium to await further instructions. As Ken relishes the tourist trail in the Flemish, fairytale city, Ray thinks he is trapped in a living nightmare, in the worst place on Earth with absolutely nothing to do except drink. As the pair while away the days, Ken receives a phone call from the boss, Harry (Fiennes) with another job and if they can't do it he might just come to Bruges himself.

The British film industry has made a niche for itself making good romantic comedies and period dramas but lately crime thrillers have come to the forefront and 'In Bruges' is one of the best.

The mixing of a crime story with sprinkling of comedy has worked well for the British film industry over the last ten years. With hits like 'Snatch', 'Gangster No. 1', 'Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels', 'Layer Cake', 'The Bank Job' and 'Sexy Beast' showing the seedier side of London's criminal underbelly that is filled with cheeky, chirpy Cockney thieves and ragamuffins. 'In Bruges' takes us into that world again but this time we are transported to the fairytale streets of the Belgian city.

Here we are introduced to Ray and Ken, two professional hit men, one a rookie and the other a seasoned veteran. After a job goes disastrously wrong, their boss Harry sends them to Bruges to wait out the heat and lay low. The younger rookie Ray hates every minute of it, longing to return to the big city of London while Ken embraces the culture and hits the tourist trail. Of course this provides a great deal of comedy, with Ray comparing his time in Bruges to that of been in purgatory, trapped between heaven and hell and then having to follow Ken around as he really embraces the Flemish city.

This is a buddy movie with a very different slant. This is because these are two characters that we really shouldn't like as they are both hit men for one of London's most notorious criminals. They swear constantly, Ray verbally and physically abuses the locals and the tourists and both of them think nothing about using violence to solve a situation. The problem is that they are both instantly like and you connect with them both as soon they grace the street and when Harry turns up, the bond becomes even stronger.

To make this kind of connection you need two actors that the audience will instantly want to follow, whatever they have done and writer/director Martin McDonagh has perfectly cast Colin Ferrell and Brendan Gleeson. Ferrell is best known for his gritty characters in hard-hitting dramas but in the character Ray, he shows a real gift for comedy. Fans of the hit TV show 'Scrubs' will know how good he can be in a comedic role but film fans will see a lighter side of the Irish superstar and one that open him up to a wider range of parts. Brendan Gleeson plays more of the straight man to Farrell's fish out of water but he does provide plenty of laughs into the bargain. There are also good performances from Clémence Poésy as Ray's love interest Chloë and Jordan Prentice as Jimmy, the butt of many of Ray's jokes. Stealing the entire movie is the performance of Ralph Fiennes as Harry. Reminiscent of Sir Ben Kingsley's role in 'Sexy Beast' but with a bit more of a comic slant, Fiennes steals the show with his manic portrayal of the gangland boss, who puts honour above anything and proves he is an actor who can play any role.

'In Bruges' is destined to become a cult, British classic, much in the same way as 'Snatch', 'Lock, Stock…' and 'Sexy Beast' have. With excellent performances from Colin Ferrell, Brendan Gleeson and a scene-stealing Ralph Fiennes, this is another great example of a British crime movie and one that will have laughing and wincing at the same time, as violence, foul language and a criminally good story combine to make this an excellent example of adult entertainment.

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