Calvary Patrick Cassidy Varese Sarabande Records “You have to detach yourself.” That’s the advice Brendan Gleeson’s scruffy pillar of a priest gives to a fellow clergyman in Calvary, the second film from John Michael McDonagh, who’s quickly and quietly expanding beyond his notoriety as “Martin McDonagh’s brother.” Calvary dumps a truckload of guilt on the doorstep …
Director John Michael McDonagh wastes no time in establishing the stakes of Calvary. In a darkened confessional, Father James Lavelle (Brendan Gleeson) is told that he is going to die in a week. The man planning to kill the priest explains it is exactly because Father Lavelle has done nothing wrong that he is going to die. Of the two McDonagh brothers, John Michael is known for his irreverent comedy The Guard, but with this latest release he joins the ranks of the most fatalistic of Irish artists.
The Guard Written and directed by John Michael McDonagh 2011, Ireland Talent is said to run in families. This certainly seems to be the case in the McDonagh family. Martin McDonagh’s 2008 ultra-black and extremely raunchy comedy In Bruges was an unlikely success. Now his brother, John Martin McDonagh, has written and directed his own …
The Guard Written by John Michael McDonagh Directed by John Michael McDonagh United Kingdom, 2011 A black comedy thriller with racism as the major means of laughter doesn’t necessarily sound like a great cinematic experience. Director John Michael McDonagh’s The Guard is just that, featuring an excellent cast, effectively flat and off-kilter framing, and music …