A Heartbreaking And Hilarious Existential Masterpiece
This is a masterpiece of film making but it is no Oklahoma or Hunchback of Notre dame. It is uncompromising and doesn’t cater nor care for the audience. I was recommended to see it and given warnings. It is a movie made on a small Irish island, stunningly beautiful and that beauty makes up for the black comedy that is advertised as being the main body of this film. The audience did laugh hesitantly sometimes and so did I although I looked around to see if I was being watched. My chocolate coated ice-cream cone was smarting in my mouth to its core.
And here I quote.;
” One of the most prominent characteristics of writer/director Martin McDonagh’s filmography is his penchant for melding mordant, off-kilter humor with striking moments of pitch black severity. It’s a trait that has shaped his entire body of work, but the alchemy arguably worked best in his brilliant feature debut, 2008’s In Bruges. Joined by actors Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, McDonagh successfully spun an ostensible fish-out-of-water comedy about two hitmen hiding out in the eponymous Belgian city into a darker, more sophisticated mediation on sin and death.
That kind of balancing act can be increasingly difficult to pull off, and for his latest film, The Banshees of Inisherin, McDonagh has re-teamed with Farrell and Gleeson for an even trickier subject: the precipitous dissolution of a close friendship and all the grim consequences that follow. McDonagh’s film is packed with moments of emotional devastation, to the point where it could potentially be a borderline unbearable sit…were it not also absolutely hysterical, handily emerging as one of the funniest films of 2022. It’s a considerable achievement that McDonagh accomplishes with aplomb, cementing The Banshees of Inisherin as one of the year’s greatest films. It truly is a sublime motion picture.” Unquote
I admit I left the cinema reeling. Two days later and I am still mulling over it.
A masterpiece indeed.
Tags: comedy, Masterpiece
Oosterman Treats Blog 
January 18, 2023 at 4:02 am |
I do not doubt, that this film is a masterpiece, Gerard. However, after seeing a few trailers to this film, I decided, I would not like to see the whole film in a cinema. If one can become very upset by seeing this very sad story, I guess it can be called a masterpiece.I’m sure, it is bound to stir one’s emotions to the utmost in an uncompromising way.
What on earth can be worse, than when a previously very close friendship ends up, by not being able to talk to the other person, not being able to communicate, not at all. Really, how bad is that? I wished for people like this, a very much better way could be found for each to go their own way. Maybe some very good councelling might help people like this? What can make a person all of a sudden emotionally unstable? Well, I’m sure all this could be investigated. Yes, this is definitly something I would like to see in a follow-up to this film, namely some kind of explanation for this extremely odd behaviour between previously very close friends!
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January 18, 2023 at 6:51 am |
Yes, not all art is serene or soothing. Is Dante’s Inferno uplifting or do reading Patrick White’s novels give solutions?
The friend who doesn’t want to continue the friendships is idealistic and wants to write a masterpiece of music and decides to shun the friendship based on superficial babble and gossip.
This film certainly skates closely to being dismal and unforgiving. However, the combination of brilliant writing and dark humor overcomes it.
I don’t think it needs a follow up or explanation.
The scenery of that small Irish island is mesmerizingly beautiful. A mosaic of windswept treeless green patches of land and hills, stone fences.
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January 18, 2023 at 5:12 am |
Thinking about the time the film was set in, the time of the Irish Civil War in 1923. No wonder there appeared some madness in some people.
Such a war does strange things to people!
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January 18, 2023 at 6:56 am |
Yes, that is right Uta. Strange things indeed. Hundreds of people escaping wars by boats have been locked up for years for asking refuge in Australia.
A madness that still continues today.
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January 18, 2023 at 7:38 am |
I was wondering of this film was worth watching. I know I really like the actors in it, so I was wanting to see it. Thank you for sharing about it, Gerard.
(((HUGS))) ❤️
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January 19, 2023 at 1:17 am |
Yes, for me it was an, at times a tortuous but fascinating couple of hours, well worth it. I am not sure if this movie goes with popcorn or the choc-top cornetto.
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January 18, 2023 at 2:12 pm |
I hadn’t heard of this film, but when I read that it contains “mordant, off-kilter humor,” I thought it might be worth a watch despite the darkness associated with it. After all, one of the most important functions of humor is to help us cope with the difficulties, tragedies, and inexplicable realities of life, so the combination makes sense to me. I see that it’s available through Amazon Prime without having to go through the complexities of subscribing and unsubscribing to another service, so I might shell out a few bucks on a rainy day and give it a go.
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January 19, 2023 at 1:22 am |
Yes, the humor pulls this film through, that is the redeeming feature of it! Although I still cringed a lot of the time, but it pulled enough for me to stay put. A strange attraction.
Am amazed it is already at Amazon, but then with Amazon, everything seems possible.
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January 19, 2023 at 1:27 am
There was a note on its page that it will becoming to television, but since I don’t have one of those, I’ll go ahead and pay Amazon their $3.99 for the pleasure of viewing.
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January 19, 2023 at 1:35 am
That is funny, I have a TV but never watch it anymore. Not the tennis or repeat series. I have weaned effortlessly. I replaced it by just pondering. It still sits there, all black and gleaming, beckoning. I don’t heed its siren.
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January 19, 2023 at 10:39 pm |
I don’t know, Gerard. I like black humor but prefer my movies to be a bit more escapism. 🙂
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January 20, 2023 at 1:17 am |
Yes, fair enough, Curt. I was advised to see it through a friend who knows me well enough to be able to cope with confronting films. Almost a week later and we are still talking about it.
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January 21, 2023 at 12:47 pm
Something that generates that much thought and conversation has to be worthwhile, Gerard.
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January 22, 2023 at 3:04 pm
Has to be worthwhile, indeed. I might still watch the movie, whenever I get a chance to see it in a cinema. I am curious to see now, where the humour comes in! 🙂
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January 24, 2023 at 10:55 pm |
Thanks for this little push, Gerard. I considered streaming it last night but instead moved on to watch Adventures of a Mathematician, which was very good. Next time I’ll go ahead and push “play.” I certainly enjoyed In Bruges.
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January 25, 2023 at 5:37 am |
Well, the Irish movie Banshees of Inisherin came up tops. It won many awards. Best Director, Best Actor, Best Screenplay and Best film by the National film festival. It received 240 nominations and 84 wins.
One of those great movies.
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