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Director
John Michael McDonagh
Credits
Producers: Ed Guiney, Chris Clark, Andrew Lowe. Writer: John Michael McDonagh
Principal Cast
Brendan Gleeson, Don Cheadle, Mark Strong, Liam Cunningham, Fionnula Flanagan
Category
Feature
Pulling the viewer into a surreal version of western Ireland built from black comedy and motifs pulled from Hollywood, The Guard sees rogue Garda Gerry Boyle (Brendan Gleeson) facing off against international drug smugglers looking to exploit the West’s isolation. Unconventional and abrasive, Boyle prefers to spend time with prostitutes or his dying mother than invest himself in FBI agent Wendell Everett’s (Don Cheadle) efforts to intercept the incoming landing of a half-billion dollar cocaine shipment. Rubbing by-the-book Everett the wrong way with his unlawful and often disinterested approach Boyle finds himself barred from the case even after the disappearance of his partner Aidan McBride (Rory Keenan) piques his interest. Writer/director John Michael McDonagh packs The Guard with film references and sly winks to the audience, whilst its erudite and talkative characters escalate from trading barbs to bullets in what became the highest grossing Irish film upon release in 2011.
96 minutes, Ireland, 2011, Colour
A COMPLETE UNKNOWN 15:10, 20:20
A REAL PAIN 16:40, 20:50
BLUE ROAD – THE EDNA O’BRIEN STORY 12:00, 18:40
HARD TRUTHS 13:00 (OC), 18:10
MARIA 14:10
PRESENCE 17:15
THE BRUTALIST (70MM) 13:15, 19:10
WILD STRAWBERRIES: BLITZ 11.00
The IFI is supported by The Arts Council