McDonagh’s War on Everyone

Finally, it is time to let police brutality be fun again. We learned in the 1980s the more reckless the enforcement of justice, the greater the deterrent effect will be. Sadly, we have lost track of that wisdom in recent years, but British filmmaker John Michael McDonagh brings it all flooding back in the tongue-in-cheek War on Everyone (trailer here), which opens this Friday in New York.

Bob Bolaño and Terry Monroe are cops who have done suspiciously well for themselves and dare anyone to call them on it. At least they are scrupulously liberal—they never discriminate when killing drugs dealers and confiscating their loot—so their boss, Lt. Gerry Stanton covers for them to an extent. Through traditional police work, the partners get wind of large scale heist in the works, but rather than foil it, they plan to hijack the spoils for themselves. However, they do not yet realize the score has been masterminded by James Mangan (also the name of the lead character in McDonagh’s short The Second Death), an expatriate British lord and gangster.

While putting the squeeze on various low-level accomplices, Monroe manages to steal away the girlfriend of the gang’s Quaker getaway driver. Unfortunately, their primary snitch double-crosses them, forcing them to follow his trail to Iceland. They continue to flail around like bulls in the proverbial china shop, unaware Lord Mangan is about to get serious.

Basically, War-on is like a more grounded version of the vintage 1980s cult sitcom Sledgehammer! Just like the short-lived TV series, its broad satire backfires, making the Lethal Weapon attitudes and violence look appealing instead of unreasonable (also thanks in no small measure to Lorne Balfe’s evocative old school funky themes and riffs).

Despite being the ostensible leads, Michael Peña and Alexander Skarsgård function (gamely enough) as straight-men for the madness around them (some being of their making, some not). Frankly, Paul Reiser gets the biggest laughs as the harried Lieutenant and McDonagh regular (going back to Second Death) David Wilmot does his Irish Marty Feldman thing as reluctant informer Pádraic Power. Tessa (“Creed”) Thompson and Stehpanie (“Miss Bala”) Sigman add energy and provide the only remotely intelligent presences as Monroe’s new lover Jackie Hollis and Bolaño’s wife Delores, respectively.

Although nowhere near as rich and satisfying as McDonagh’s The Guard and Calvaary, War-on is breezy, humorous, and not the least bit convincing as an act of social commentary, which is rather happy news from a viewer’s perspective. It is also one of the few films that spends significant time in both Albuquerque and Iceland, so it has that going for it too. Recommended for fans of 1970s and 1980s cop movies, War on Everyone opens this Friday (2/3) in New York, at the Cinema Village.

Sundance ’14: Calvary

Whenever we see a picturesque Irish village with a curmudgeonly priest we are conditioned to automatically think quaint little comedy—the kind in which old people might get naked. This will be a much darker affair.  Reuniting with Brendan Gleeson, The Guard helmer John Michael McDonagh offers a sober meditation on faith, sacrifice, and forgiveness in Calvary, which screens today as part of this year’s Sundance Film Festival.

Father James was called to the priesthood late in life, after his divorce. Considered a good man by those who know him, he is completely innocent of the church’s abuse scandals.  Yet, that is precisely why a grown victim announces in confessional his intention to kill the upstanding father.  Murdering a compromised priest simply would not have the same jarring effect as killing Lavelle. With the one week deadline looming, Lavelle sets out to find the disturbed parishioner amongst his shockingly jaded flock.

Perhaps fortuitously, Father James will also have to deal with his twentysomething daughter, who has come to recuperate from another suicide attempt. They will have some unusually serious and heartfelt discussions throughout the course of the film, even though Father James never reveals the death threat hanging over his head. However, McDonagh does not use the confessional seal as a thriller device. Since the mystery man never asks for absolution, Father James is free to seek the counsel of his bishop and the local dodgy police inspector.  Yet, for various reasons, Father James is determined to handle the matter personally.

Given the title and the clock ticking down to Sunday, the symbolism of Calvary is almost crushing at times.  Nonetheless, its exploration of religious conviction is exceptionally mature and thoughtful.  Father James is a good man, but hardly a saint.  In contrast, the village is almost shockingly contemptuous of his relative virtue. If the Church’s problematic response to the notorious rash of abuse scandals is the lighter fluid that ignites Calvary, the moral bankruptcy of the increasingly agnostic village is the kindling that keeps it ablaze.

Throughout the film, Brendan Gleeson is pretty much perfect as Father James, delivering gruff one-liners, while facing a series almost Biblical trials with palpable dignity and resolution.  It is a salty yet mostly understated turn that might represent a career pinnacle. Likewise, Kelly Reilly is absolutely devastating in her big scenes as his daughter.  They are backed up by a diverse supporting cast, including the likes of M. Emmet Walsh and Orla O’Rourke, who always convincingly look and act like members of the dysfunctional provincial community.

At the halfway point, Calvary seems rather overstuffed with subplots and side characters, yet nearly each and every one pays off for McDonagh. It might sound like an opportunist broadside launched at the church, but its depiction of the good priest is remarkable sympathetic and nuanced. In fact, McDonagh maintains a tone much more in keeping with Bresson’s Diary of a Country Priest or Jean-Pierre Melville’s Léon Morin, Priest than the churlish score-settling of Philomena. Highly recommended (especially to those most inclined to be suspicious of it), Calvary screens tonight (1/25) in Ogden as part of this year’s Sundance Film Festival.