THE GUARD doesn't quite top the indie-crime wave

   The Guard is a hip, low-key, black comedy about two officials, one a local Irish policeman and the other an American FBI agent, who join forces to uncover a large, drug-trafficking operation. The central figure of The Guard is a zany and abhorrent Irish Sergeant, and seems like a character especially tailored for the comic likes of the late Peter Sellers or even Bill Murray. However, I must say, Irish indie-fave, Brendan Gleeson, shines in The Guard; his irreverent behavior is the perfect match for the straight-laced FBI Man, played by Don Cheadle. It’s too bad that I’ve seen this kind of oddball, criminal scenarios in a number of dark comedies, specifically the awesome In Bruges (2008), which was written and directed by Martin Mcdonagh, brother of the director of The Guard, John Michael McDonagh.

            

   The Guard opens strong, but as the clichéd, criminal plot treads along, the energy loses steam. The film opens with the bumbling Sergeant observing a drunk-driving accident along the road. A group of partying teenagers flipped their car and everyone was killed. Instead of taking the drastic situation seriously, Gleeson frisks one of the victims for any “goodies.” The Sergeant recovers a bag of drugs; he disposes of the cocaine and pops a hit of acid in his mouth. The filmmaker inserts an extreme-close-up shot of the smiley-face-acid blot. First-time director, John Michael McDonagh, perfectly establishes the bizarre and dead-pan, humorous tone, but all it really did was cause a craving for more outrageousness.

    The quirky and dim-witted police investigation holds many similarities to Fargo (1996), but unlike the Cohen Brother’s black comedic masterpiece, The Guard’s portrayal of mass corruption and murder in a simple town, doesn’t measure, not even close. I felt as though this sort of criminal-caper comedy came out a decade-and-a-half too late. It would’ve been a bigger hit in the mid-to-late 90s, especially after the post-Pulp Fiction (1994) phase.

    Besides Fargo and In Bruges, I’ve seen this sort of film before—take a look at Guy Ritchie’s English gangster hits, Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) or Snatch (2000). These were all indie gems where the criminals and the cops talked about everything humorous to them, except the plot. As you know, director Guy Ritchie and many other filmmakers in the 90s, were incredibly inspired by the ingenious hybrid of comedy and gruesomeness that was well-established in Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction. The criminals and the bumbling detectives would bicker back and forth and the audience is supposed to laugh, where I merely smirked.

    On a lighter note, I absolutely loved the rural setting—I think the filmmaker mixes different 35mm film stocks, enhancing the beauty and variety of the small Irish backdrop.  I was taken by the charming surroundings—the small local pubs, lushly green hills, and the rocky cliffs clashing against the cool blue sea. After seeing this film and the light-hearted Waking Ned Divine (1998), I’m going to have to make it a plan to visit a small Irish town, where I’d be the only American that stands out. If you closely observe the background, you’ll notice there are only a small handful of characters living in the community; my favorite being an odd English boy who drags his dog along his small pink bicycle. The filmic images in The Guard have a child-like, picture-book quality to the texture-a variation of bright and dim cinematography-and I loved looking at it.

    I think The Guard is worth checking out, perhaps when it comes out on DVD. While you’re at it, follow the film with In Bruges and Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels. Then, you’ll notice the great, humorous whims of all three films, along with the clichéd similarities of the foul-mouthed characters.

 **1/2 (out of four stars)