6. In Bruges
In a way, In Bruges is much like Boogie Nights. Come on now, stick with me and let me explain in a similar vein to Paul T. Anderson's unflinching portrayal of the 70's porno world, it takes a blueprint for off-kilter, knockabout fun and sends it down a very dark alley. The kooky premise is that both protagonists are hitmen holed up in a niche-tourist city (to be fair, Bruges is lovely) waiting around until the heat over a past job dies down. It's a pretty original concept,and augmented with Martin McDonagh's absurdist eye, it's as close to a sure-fire comedy hit as you can get. That's the paradoxical thing about such a premise it's formulaic, precisely because it isn't. It's the very definition of an unorthodox comedy, something strangely described as 'off-the-rails' despite the oxymoron inherent in that description. It's replete with unlikable characters we can't help but sympathise with come film close, a wacky support cast to bounce off and surreal settings to traipse around. Sure, it remains a difficult trick to pull off something so outlandish and credit when a writer does it, but we've all done the dance a million times before. However, the mood drops through the floor when you learn what the job was, and why both men are out there. To put it simply, Colin Farrell's Ray is out in exile because he killed a child albeit accidentally and Brendan Gleeson's Ken is accompanying him ostensibly as a mate, but later finds out he has to whack the bloke. It's incredibly dark stuff, made all the darker by the fact Ray's desperately distraught at his actions, and Gleeson's standard mode is that of horrible depression. Yet for me, the crystalising moment is when Ray breaks down in the middle act it's depressing, upsetting and effectively blindsides you, breaking the illusion of dark comedy by having a character get overwhelmed by just how bleak it all is. It's at that point you realise that you came in for a comedy, but instead the whole thing became a tragedy. Nobody's coming out of this at least not well and the unremittingly bleak tone is kept right until the ambiguous ending.