The Banshees of Inisherin (2022)

Director: Martin McDonagh

Starring: Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Kerry Condon

Two lifelong friends find themselves at an impasse when one abruptly ends their relationship, with alarming consequences for both of them.

Hell, where do I even begin telling you about this silly, stupid, idiotic, absurd, illogical premise? What did critics find so captivating about this movie to nominate it for 9 Oscars? 9 Oscars??!!For this??

The premise is about two friends, Padraic (Colin Farrell) and Colm (Brendan Gleeson) who used to go to the pub every day at 2pm for the past couple of years. Then one day Colm simply decides “he doesn’t like Padraic anymore”. Just like that. After being friends for so long, he just suddenly realized Padraic is “dull” and he no longer wants to be associated with him.

For the next two hours we sit watching Padraic nagging Colm to be friends again, and Colm threatening to cut off his fingers if Padraic talks to him (!!!) Seriously? This is a plot for a film?? Oh, and Colm actually does exactly that: cut off his fingers…

Padraic lives with his sister, Siobhan (Kerry Condon) and their pet donkey. (By the way, the animals were by far the best part about this dull movie!). And so Padraic sits sulking every moment because his friend now thinks he’s dull, and Siobhan is the only character in this entire film that makes any sense. And Dominic (Barry Keoghan), a young guy with a crush on Siobhan.

And so the feud between Padraic and Colm continues for the entire movie. Why, just why would ANYONE harm HIMSELF to this extent because of SOMEONE ELSE? Colm is a complete nutcase and needs to see a shrink! Or better yet, he needs a straight jacket, has to be locked up and the key thrown away. The character actions are completely illogical and insane – even Padraic becomes irrational towards the end of the movie. And there’s not even an acceptable explanation for Colm’s absurdity. I mean, if he was actually losing his mind, it would make perfect sense, but alas, apparently not. This film is just mind-numbingly stupid, and yet it received so many accolades!! What the hell for?

Ok, let’s look at the good here since the premise is so utterly preposterous. The beautiful landscape makes for beautiful cinematography. The characters were so stupid that I even hesitate to laud the performances. (With the exception of Kerry Condon, whom I thought was exceptionally good). The animals were adorable. That’s it. I hated this movie.

Unbelievably, this dull movie with its silly premise received no less than 450 award nominations (!!!!), already winning 117 at the time of writing this review. It received a mind boggling 9 Oscar nominations (Best Supporting Actress, Best Lead Actor, Best Original Score, Best Motion Picture of the Year, Best Directing, Best Supporting Actor – for Brenan Gleeson and Barry Keoghan – Best Editing, and Best Original Screenplay). Are you kidding me on the ‘Best Original Screenplay’ Oscar nomination???!!

Would I watch it again? No.