Top

film

Stories

 

Police Procedural as Ode to Ireland's Past in The Guard

Comments (0) By Nick Pinkerton Wednesday, Jul 27 2011

Details

The Guard
Directed by John Michael McDonagh
Sony Pictures Classics
Opens July 29

Related Content

More About

The Guard is a shaggy-man character study, its subject a fiftysomething policeman in West Ireland, Sergeant Gerry Boyle (Brendan Gleeson). No by-the-book cop, Boyle spends his days off romping with hookers, and has no qualms about gulping MDMA from the pockets of a freshly dead teenager—he also displays a proletarian literary bent, visits his ailing mum to cheer her with pained jocularity, and, unlike his better-turned-out colleagues, holds himself to an unorthodox-but-unbendable code of honor. As an FBI agent visiting to intercept a massive drug drop, Don Cheadle is on hand to straight-man, and to instruct the audience to grudgingly appreciate Boyle for what he is, despite his racial ribbing of the Don Rickles all-in-good-fun school ("I'm Irish, sir, racism is a part of me culture," Boyle announces). One senses that The Guard is McDonagh's eulogy for the brusque, warts-and-all character of a passing generation of tough, working-class Irishmen, much as Clint Eastwood's Gran Torino was for vintage Americanism. But McDonagh's film eschews any pretense of social reality for cinematographic fancifulness and too-clever-by-half dialogue, much of it from a trio of drug-smugglers livening up Boyle's jurisdiction with homicides. As Cheadle drifts around a vaguely thought-through role, The Guard bets everything on Gleeson's boyish twinkle—and tends to overestimate its own raffish charm.

Related Content

Check out this week's featured ad for Restaurants
More Ads >>
 
My Voice Nation Help
4 comments
  Livefyre
Newest | Oldest
calindreams
calindreams

Ha ha. I missed the part where he was gulping mdma! Liked the bit where he dropped an acid tab though.

Great film. Would love to see a tv spinoff of it.

Dub
Dub

Would ya ever go an' shoite!

Austin_brady
Austin_brady

You strike me as a smug yank with the kind of personalty similar to the cockroaches running around your, all but yourself,empty apartment ye grumpy aul bollox. Go watch Schindlers Fist...that'll cheer ye right up.

Guest
Guest

The lines not "I'm Irish, sir, racism is a part of me culture," it's "I'm Irish, sure, racism is a part of me culture," could just not understand the movie?

 
VOICE Daily Deals

Now Showing

Find capsule reviews, showtimes & tickets for all films in town.

Powered By VOICE Places

Slideshows

Join My Voice Nation for free stuff, film info & more!


Box Office

  1. Star Trek Into Darkness, 70.2 mil, 83.7 mil
  2. Iron Man 3, 35.8 mil, 337.7 mil
  3. The Great Gatsby, 23.9 mil, 90.7 mil
  4. Pain & Gain, 3.2 mil, 46.7 mil
  5. The Croods, 3.0 mil, 177.0 mil
  6. 42, 2.8 mil, 88.8 mil
  7. Oblivion, 2.3 mil, 85.6 mil
  8. Mud, 2.2 mil, 11.7 mil
  9. Peeples, 2.2 mil, 7.9 mil
  10. The Big Wedding, 1.2 mil, 20.3 mil
Movie Title, Weekly Earnings, Total Earnings

Movie Trailers

More News Stories >
©2013 Village Voice, LLC, All rights reserved.
Browse Voice Nation
  • Voice Places New York

    Voice Places

    Find everything you're looking for in your city

  • Happy Hour App

    Happy Hour App

    Find the best happy hour deals in your city

  • Daily Deals

    Daily Deals

    Get today's exclusive deals at savings of anywhere from 50-90%

  • Best Of

    Best Of...

    Check out the hottest list of places and things to do around your city