In Bruges (2008)

Comedy, Crime, Drama

Director: Martin McDonagh
Writer: Martin McDonagh
Starring: Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Ralph Fiennes, Clemence Poesy, Jeremie Renier

"Shoot first. Sightsee later."

Written and directed by Martin McDonagh, an Oscar-winner for his short film Six-Shooter, the movie is a powerful mix of dark comedy and crime thriller elements.

After a failed job carried out by two irish hit men, Ray and Ken are sent to Bruges by their employer Harry and ordered to wait for a phone call with further instructions. The city is loved by one and hated by the other. The two characters on 'vacation' roam the small medieval town of Bruges, trying to balance between culture and entertainment while they have all sorts of surreal encounters with tourists, locals, a dwarf and a potential romance for Ray with Chloe, who may or may not be part of a local film crew.

Farrell won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy for the film, while Martin McDonagh won a BAFTA Award for Best Original Screenplay.

Plot summary from IMDb: London based hit men Ray and Ken are told by their boss Harry Waters to lie low in Bruges, Belgium for up to two weeks following their latest hit, which resulted in the death of an innocent bystander. Harry will be in touch with further instructions. While they wait for Harry's call, Ken, following Harry's advice, takes in the sights of the medieval city with great appreciation. But the charms of Bruges are lost on the simpler Ray, who is already despondent over the innocent death, especially as it was his first job. Things change for Ray when he meets Chloe, part of a film crew shooting a movie starring an American dwarf named Jimmy. When Harry's instructions arrive, Ken, for whom the job is directed, isn't sure if he can carry out the new job, especially as he has gained a new appreciation of life from his stay in the fairytale Bruges. While Ken waits for the inevitable arrival into Bruges of an angry Harry, who feels he must clean up matters on his own, Ray is dealing with his own problems, not only with Harry, but with a Canadian couple and a half-blind thief named Eirik. Ray hopes he can count on both Chloe and Ken to help him carve out a new life for himself. In the end, Harry, involved in an incident with Jimmy, may have to keep to his own principles.

Awards: Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 18 wins & 42 nominations.
Runtime: 107 min
R