Title: The Boondock Saints
Starring: Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus and Willem Dafoe
Synopsis: Connor and Murphy MacManus are your typical Irish brothers living in Boston. They work hard but also play hard as well and their faith is as important to them as each other. In fact, this is where we first see the brothers, in church on Sunday reflecting on the death of a prominent priest. But their lives take a new turn after an argument with the Russian Mafia starts with a bar brawl and ends up with bodies in an alleyway and a FBI agent on the case. Things are made more difficult for Special Agent Paul Smecker as the people of the city see the vigilantes as heroes and are actually applauding them for killing the mobsters.
A spiritual awakening (in a jail cell of all places) leads the boys to become vigilantes, targeting the Mafia plaguing Boston. Not uncommon in any way in the media, with Arrow and The Spirit coming to mind, but these two don’t hide behind masks or operate in the shadows. Their goals are clear to see as are they. The only dilemma Smecker really has is whether or not he actually wants to bring the two to justice when he eventually finds them.
The scene above, for me, sums up what the ‘Saints’ (a nickname given to them by the press – again not an uncommon thing in this days and age) are about. They believe in justice and will deliver it: any time, anywhere and by any means necessary. This film, based on writer/director Troy Duffy’s experiences while living in Los Angeles, shows us men who are devout to their faith, loyal to each other, determined to succeed but who also have a lighter side as well as some pretty big flaws. The close on-screen relationship between Reedus and Flanery is as close as brothers can be off screen and this is probably part of the reason why the film has endured as long and why it has earned it’s place as a cult classic.
Watch if you liked: The Departed, Smoking Aces. Also recommend this for any Willem Dafoe fans.
Rating: 7/10. Thought provoking, complex but also funny and unashamedly honest and brutal in parts.
Words by Megan Roxburgh