Calvary wasn’t what I was expecting.
The trailers sold it as a dark comedy with a bunch of weird, small town
characters. The film is definitely funny in parts, but it is also deep and
emotional as it plunges one man into darkness.
The film, written and directed but John Michael McDonagh,
focuses on Father James (Brendan Gleeson),
a Catholic priest tending to his flock in a small village in Ireland. At the
start of the film, a man comes to confession and tells James that he is going
to kill him in a week’s time, not because he’s a bad priest, but because he’s a
good one. It’s a punishment, as the man was abused as a child by a priest. So,
James sets to putting his house in order, while coming to the conclusion that
he isn’t as well-regarded in his community as he’d thought. He also takes
measures to defend himself and puts his faith in God, even as it is shaken on
all sides. All the while, the audience is trying to guess who intends to do
Father James harm. As Father James goes about his week, we learn more and more
about his past, as do the people in the community. What results is a meditation
on community, secrets, and the place of faith in today’s society.
This movie is all Gleeson. His easy humor blends well with
his imposing figure. I don’t want to give too much away, but suffice to say,
you get to see all sides of Gleeson as he plays Father James. It was
fascinating to watch him take control of this character and deliver a fantastic
and nuanced performance. With some of the events in this film, one might think
that McDonagh is saying there’s no place for someone like Father James in the
modern world, but the final scene quashes that sentiment.
The rest of the cast is equally fantastic. Chris O’Dowd
surprises with his typically good-natured performance, but tinged with
darkness. He seems to be coming out of his man-child roles of the past. Kelly Reilly does
fine work as Fiona, the new girl in town, while Aidan Gillen is
great as the atheist surgeon, Frank. Gleeson’s real-life son, Domhnall Gleeson
makes an appearance as a failed member of James’ flock, which was a nice
surprise. Orla
O’Rourke plays the cheating Veronica with a devil may care attitude and Killian Scott is
hilariously odd as Milo. Finally, M. Emmett Walsh
turns up as an American writer and friend of James. It was good to see him
still kicking around.
Overall, while Calvary
wasn’t exactly what I was expecting, I liked it a lot. It is both an emotional
character piece as well as a compelling mystery. The ending is very powerful
and there’s plenty of humor throughout. If it’s playing in your area and you’re
looking for an antidote to summer blockbusters, check it out.
No comments:
Post a Comment