I recently went to see The Banshees of Innisherin, Michael MacDonagh's latest movie, a black comedy beautifully set on a West Coast Ireland in 1923, exploring the effects of isolation, loneliness, angst and anger with Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell playing wonderfully and rather heartbreakingly together again. As you know Gleeson, Farrell and MacDonagh made In Bruges in 2008. That was the first time I ‘got’ Farrell, despite having seen him in Miami Vice, The Recruit, Minority Report, and Phone Booth, but not understanding what the fuss about him was all about. But in In Bruges I saw him playing a vulnerable and not very bright man, not the kind of role that ‘film stars’ - and he was already a film star by then - often accept, or do well. In The Banshees he shows the ability to be look confused and hurt and not understand why he is being hurt. Gleeson is as impressive as ever playing a rather unsympathetic character going through – or not going through – an existential crisis. I am not going to give plot spoilers, but this movies certainty raises a number of philosophic issues – among them what the good Doctor Mark Kermode calls ‘the vanity of despair’.
We also have Barry Keoghan. I have only seen him – or known I was seeing him - in some minor roles until The Killing of a Sacred Deer(with Farrell again),The Eternals, The Batman and Dunkirk. Here he is unforgettable - Best Supporting Actor? Plus Kerry Condon, who has a busy CV, including being the voice of Iron Man Tony Stark’s Digital Assistant in the Avenger’s movies and had a small role in MacDonagh’s Three Billboards. Again, terrific here.
I am sure there will be a lot of nominations for this film and its cast. Beautifully shot, seemingly using natural light as much as possible (it is set in dimly cottages and the island’s only pub) and with a subtle soundtrack underlying a poignant, biting and funny script that sometimes sounds like Sam Beckett.
My only distraction was that it was partly filmed on Inishmore, just off the West coast of Ireland, and visible from my front room, – and also on Achill Island. I recognised the Inishmore settings again and again, having spent a lot of time walking there over the years, so the moves to Achill were obvious and disrupting. That is not a criticism of the movie of course. MacDonagh has based a number of his stage plays on the Arran islands, The Cripple of Innismaan and the Lieutenant of Innishmore , plus The Beauty of Queen of Leenane set up the Galway coast. He wrote The Banshees some time ago for the stage but was not happy with it so it was never produced. Well it works very well on screen.
Carter Burwell provided the music. He is a veteran American film composer, used by MacDonagh for In Bruges, Seven Psychopaths and 3 Billboards; by the Coen Bros (Blood Simple, Raising Arizona, Barton Fink, Fargo, True Grit, The Man Who Wasn’t There, The Big Lebowski and No Country For Old Men etc); by Todd Haynes for Carol, and Spike Jonze for Adaptation. (The are just some of my favourite movies, nowhere near his whole oeuvre!) MacDonagh was determined to use the Bulgarian song Polegnala e Todora by le Mystere des Voix Bulgaria choir for the opening sequence.
The film was shot by the Brit Bill Davis, rather a change from his recent Marvel jobs on Eternals, Captain Marvel, Doctor Strange, Guardians of the Galaxy etc, but he also shot Three Billboards and Seven Psychopaths for MacDonagh.
Mark Tildesley was the production designer for The Banshees, and has also worked on No Time to Die, Phantom Thread, The Two Popes, T2 Trainspotting, both 28 Days and 28 Weeks later, and The Constant Gardener.
When we look at artists and professionals such as these I think we have to be impressed by their sheer range. Quantity and Quality.
There are some films I know I want to watch again as soon as possible after my first viewing. These include Pulp Fiction, The Dark Knight, Tree of Life, Joker and Arrival. I am going back to the movie house to see The Banshees as soon as possible.
