Calvary (2014) Review!!

Synopsis – After he is threatened during a confession, a good-natured priest must battle the dark forces closing in around him.

My Take – This dark comedy/drama is director John Michael McDonagh’s followup to 2011’s brilliant The Guard which also happened to star the awesome yet under rated Brendan Gleeson in the lead role. This films deals with serious issues from Ireland’s past with slight dark comedy moments. Incidentally the director’s brother Martin McDonagh has also made another awesome dark comedy set in Ireland – In Bruges, starring Colin Farell & of course Brenden Gleeson. The film follows a Catholic Priest Father James (Gleeson) who is threatened during a confession by someone who we don’t get to see. This man claims to have been sexually molested by a Priest several times as a kid and although Father James is a good and decent Priest he must take the fall in order for a statement to be made. Father James is given one week (or so this man claims) before being killed on the following Sunday on the beach.

The father is troubled by this threat but he must continue doing his parish work during the remaining course of the week. We follow him as he has some deep conversations with the different members of the small Irish town they live in. Having been married (and widowed) before he answered the Call, Father James has an unhappy daughter (Kelly Reilly) down from the big city, her wrists bandaged from a suicide attempt. A challenging set-up for a movie, especially one which sells itself as a comedy – albeit a very dark comedy. With Father James we meet most of the locals, a sinful lot for such a small village. The butcher who beats his two-timing wife; the aggressive local publican; the cynical doctor; the alcoholic landowner; the police inspector with a taste for rent-boys; an ancient exiled American writer (M. Emmet Walsh). It’s a very interesting premise that hooks you from the start and has you wondering which of all the troubled people in the town might be the one who has threatened this goodhearted Priest. However the film works just as fine without that premise because the interactions between these characters is the true center of the story. These are all broken men and women who the Father interacts with and most of the conversations are deep and spiritual. Father James Lavelle is a likable priest, grappling with applying the church’s teachings in the modern world. It is a thankless task and always his objective is undermined by the failures of the church itself. Father James’s character is contrasted with that of a younger priest he shares the parish with (David Wilmot). Yes, The script is clumsy in parts & gets a bit too slow for its own good, but the actors carry us over the bumps. Brendan Gleeson is a fantastic actor and one wishes he continue to collaborate with director McDonagh.

The rest of the cast are also excellent and whilst it is a tad unrealistic that so many odd balls and “characters’ all live in one small town, it is clear that they are representative of the vast array of disaffected folk living in Ireland today. On the whole Calvary isn’t a film about religion, but it does have some important things to say about faith and virtues. It is very well written by McDonagh and the screenplay is rich in dark comedy; perhaps one of the best things about this movie. There is plenty of dark humor balanced with a great amount of spiritual questions. I was pleasantly surprised with how well the material was handled. Calvary is a powerful film with great performances and some sharp writing, making it a complete must watch!