DVD: In Bruges

DVD: In Bruges

Bruges (a town in Belgium) is a fairytale place. The visuals of this film, where it showcases the city, are incredible. The film,
one of the blackest comedies I’ve seen in a while, is more plot and dialogue driven than especially character driven, and the bad language is completely off the charts (a special feature of the DVD collates 90 seconds of just swearing from a film that’s around 100 minutes long). Somehow this is softened by the accents of the characters, and so the effect is not as bad as it might be.

The plot revolves around a couple of hitmen (Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson) who have been sent by their crime boss to Bruges for a few days to wait for instructions. As the film unfolds, we find out why each character acts the way they do, and everything unfurls when Ralph Fiennes arrives onscreen. In the midst, unpredictably, there’s a romantic sub-plot of sorts, a dwarf, and a film set within the film. I’m not familiar with the film that they’re making, but it appears there’s a whole other layer of subtext for people who have more knowledge of cinema.

If you’re squeamish about blood/gore or swearing, I would give this one a wide berth, but otherwise, it’s a very clever black comedy.

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