Connemara, Galway: the scornful, self-destructive yet strangely lovable Sergeant Gerry Boyle(Brendan Gleeson) is reluctantly dwindling his way through everyday life before a multi-billion dollar drug smuggling ring threatens to break the relative peace and quiet of the sleepy town; when straight-laced but street smart FBI agent Wendell Everett (Don Cheadle) arrives to take over the case, the unlikely duo must begrudgingly find a way to work together before time runs out.
Gerry Boyle is a classic ‘bad lieutenant’: caustic, confrontational, and certainly non-PC; never married with no children, filling his relatively empty life with booze, drugs & prostitutes whilst his police work falls by the wayside; his over-enthusiastic new partner grates him at every turn, and his interactions with the other inhabitants of Connemara seem to serve nothing more than to provide him with opportunities for biting sarcasm; his relationship with his ailing mother provides a rare indication that deep down, perhaps Sergeant Boyle has a bigger heart than he’d like the world to know about.
This is a powerhouse of black comedy – a thinking man’s buddy cop movie, if you like – full to the brim with instantly quotable one-liners and a riotous, must-see central performance that will deservedly be remembered as one of Gleeson’s finest hours. And whilst his maverick, apathetic policeman no doubt runs the show, Don Cheadle provides the perfect comedy foil as the two spectacularly fail to impress one another throughout; indeed, Boyle’s offensive yet hilariously wry observations on race, religion and his own life experiences serve only to further disgust the illiberal FBI man. The often under-rated Mark Strong and the ever-dependable Liam Cunningham are cast perfectly as the callous and risible – and occasionally philosophical – drug smugglers trailed by Boyle and Everett.
“The Guard” is a memorable debut from first-time director and writer John Michael McDonagh. Whilst the plot itself doesn’t offer much in the way of tension or twists, you’ll be so glued to the screen waiting for the next Gerry Boyle zinger that it’s unlikely you’ll care too much – he really is unmissable.
Deryn O’Sullivan (@silverscene_)
Deryn Paul O'Sullivan 