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In Bruges
Generally favorable reviews
Based on 34 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 100 votes
Read user comments
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Movie Info
Genre(s): Action | Comedy
Written by: Martin McDonagh
Directed by: Martin McDonagh
Release Date:
Theatrical: February 8, 2008
DVD: June 24, 2008
Running Time: 107 minutes, Color
Origin: UK / Belgium
Summary
RATING: R for strong bloody violence, pervasive language and some drug use
Starring Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Ralph Fiennes, and Clemence Posey
Very much out of place amidst the gothic architecture, canals, and cobbled streets, the two hit men fill their days living the lives of tourists. Ray, still haunted by the bloodshed in London, hates the place, while Ken, even as he keeps a fatherly eye on Ray's often profanely funny exploits, finds his mind and soul being expanded by the beauty and serenity of the city. But the longer they stay waiting for Harry's call, the more surreal their experience becomes, as they find themselves in weird encounters with locals, tourists, violent medieval art, a dwarf American actor shooting a European art film, Dutch prostitutes, and a potential romance for Ray in the form of Chloe, who may have some dark secrets of her own. And when the call from Harry does finally come, Ken and Ray's vacation becomes a life-and-death struggle of darkly comic proportions and surprisingly emotional consequences. (Focus Features)
Also On The Web: Internet Movie Database View The Trailer Official Studio Site
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
An endlessly surprising, very dark, human comedy, with a plot that cannot be foreseen but only relished.
Read Full Review >Chicago Reader J.R. Jones
The movie gradually deepens from odd-couple comedy into Catholic-themed drama, but it remains marvelously funny throughout. Instead of hitting the easy notes of black humor, McDonagh skillfully modulates between broad character laughs and the men's piercing anguish as the story nears its bloody conclusion.
Read Full Review >The Onion (A.V. Club) Tasha Robinson
When it's funny, it's hilarious; when it's serious, it's powerful; and either way, it's an endless pleasant surprise.
Read Full Review >USA Today Claudia Puig
Sharply written, superbly acted, funny and even occasionally touching.
Read Full Review >Baltimore Sun Chris Kaltenbach
Tightly scripted and intricately plotted, the buddy film manages the neat two-step of being simultaneously profane and engaging.
Read Full Review >Empire Damon Wise
With In Bruges, the British gangster movie gets a Croydon facelift. It may not be new, but it’s a wonderfully fresh take on a familiar genre: fucked-up, far-out and very, very funny.
Read Full Review >Film Threat Jeremy Mathews
In a film full of great performances, Ralph Feinnes steals the show as Harry, the boss.
Read Full Review >Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern
The heroes are two hit men, and the tone is often absurdist. But the film is also very funny and surprisingly affecting.
Read Full Review >Washington Post John Anderson
Those who know McDonagh's work know a vein of darkness will run deeply through the comedy. It has seldom been darker. Or funnier. He has made a hit-man movie in which you don't know what will happen and can't wait to find out. Every movie should be so cliched.
Read Full Review >Rolling Stone Peter Travers
A haunting and hypnotic movie, just the thing to get lost in.
Read Full Review >Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold
A perfectly titled and thoroughly engaging -- if at times gleefully violent -- black comedy.
Read Full Review >Premiere Glenn Kenny
This finale, which piles one bloody absurd epiphany on top of another almost ad infinitum, is where McDonagh lays all his cards on the table -- and his characters are the ones who have to pay up.
Read Full Review >Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips
After playing one too many sullen poseurs it’s clear Colin Farrell and Ralph Fiennes had a ball making an inky black comedy seething with grandiose invective.
Read Full Review >San Francisco Chronicle Mick LaSalle
Witty and lively, with a soul to it, as well.
Read Full Review >TV Guide Maitland McDonagh
Little more than a shaggy-dog tale about two hit men killing time in the picturesque, medieval Belgian city of the title, goosed with crackling dialogue and generous dollops of gore.
Read Full Review >Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea
In Bruges, at its best, works like "Pulp Fiction" with Irish (and Belgian) accents, digressing into weird discourse and giving a bunch of actors the occasion to shine in small, peculiar roles.
Read Full Review >Miami Herald Connie Ogle
Dry humor keeps In Bruges fresh and lively and makes it a whole lot of fun to watch.
Read Full Review >Los Angeles Times Carina Chocano
A dark comedy with a melancholy streak and punchy sense of humor.
Read Full Review >Slate Dana Stevens
A jolly mess of a movie. Overplotted, choppy, and contrived, it nonetheless has a curious vitality that makes you wonder where McDonagh will go next.
Read Full Review >The Hollywood Reporter James Greenberg
Chock full of wonderful lines delivered by a splendid cast, the film toys with the conventions and mostly transcends the limitations.
Read Full Review >Variety Robert Koehler
Closer to pics like “The Hit” and “Miller’s Crossing” than to McDonagh’s bristling, funny plays, this half-comic, half-serious account of two Irish hitmen who are sent to the titular Belgian burg to cool their heels after a job is moderately fair as a nutty character study, but overly far-fetched once the action kicks in.
Read Full Review >ReelViews James Berardinelli
The acting is top-notch. Colin Farrell, who seems to be gravitating increasingly toward smaller films, effectively channels his manic energy. He and Brendan Gleeson display chemistry in the Odd Couple vein, occasionally giving rise to instances of humor. Ralph Fiennes plays one of the most twisted roles of his career.
Read Full Review >The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Rick Groen
The setting is unique, the cast is terrific, the dialogue crackles and, if only there were a plot worth believing, In Bruges might have been a fine film.
Read Full Review >New York Daily News Jack Mathews
The banter between these unlikely partners seems inspired by Quentin Tarantino's ingeniously insipid dialogue, delivered with indelible deadpan sincerity by John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson in "Pulp Fiction." Neither the dialogue nor the characters are as interesting here.
Read Full Review >The New York Times Manohla Dargis
Mr. Gleeson, Mr. Farrell and especially the late-arriving and welcome Mr. Fiennes have great fun rummaging around inside Mr. McDonagh’s modest bag of tricks.
Read Full Review >Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum
Neither star is sloppy, but both are loose and mellow -- a couple of pros who know they're the whole show.
Read Full Review >Christian Science Monitor Peter Rainer
It's a showpiece for that Belgian city's medieval splendor. You may want to book vacation reservations upon leaving the theater, although the memory of this underwhelming movie may tarnish the sightseeing.
Read Full Review >New York Magazine David Edelstein
For In Bruges to click, McDonagh needed either to get more real or more fake.
Read Full Review >Village Voice Ella Taylor
Bruges may be the movie's rather too-long-running joke, but Farrell's shaggy brow is easily the most entertaining thing in Irish playwright Martin McDonagh's first foray into the crime caper.
Read Full Review >Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten
The film's light comedy and dark morality make for an unsettling mix.
Read Full Review >New York Post Lou Lumenick
As formulaic in its own way as anything mainstream Hollywood turns out, In Bruges is also a fish-out-of-water comedy.
Read Full Review >The New Yorker Anthony Lane
No one wants a movie that tiptoes in step with political correctness, yet the willful opposite can be equally noxious, and, as In Bruges barges and blusters its way through dwarf jokes, child-abuse jokes, jokes about fat black women, and moldy old jokes about Americans, it runs the risk of pleasing itself more than its paying viewers.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this movie is 8.3 (out of 10) based on 100 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Kris D gave it a9:
Last week i saw this movie on TV (paychannel) I didnt really know what it was about, but i have to say i was completely blown away. While the story is of course very different, this film gave me the same feeling like pulp fiction did back in the days. Just after watching it, i felt like i immediately wanted to see it again. And this is a VERY RARE thing for me nowadays. Anyway, this weekend i bought it on dvd. The characters are really loveable, the humour is dark and the situations are absurd. There's a lot to be liked about this film. Only two kinds of people won't like it imo. The ones who don't get it and the arty farty so-called movie "connaiseurs" who are searching way too much behind it. This was a very nice surprise for me.
Wepmajo E gave it a10:
Perfect from start to finish. The dry sometimes extremely dark humor shoots your funny bone as the dramatic scenes shoot through your nerves. Great performances all around, beautiful locales, excellent pacing. By far the best movie of last year.
Al P gave it a10:
Don't believe the negativity. Everyone I know has taken something different from this film but they all loved it and so did I. It is a movie that just begs to be watched right through in one sitting and manages to switch from absurd to disturbing to hilarious whilst still remaining completely believeable thanks to the quality of the script and actors.
Tony S. gave it a10:
Best of the year. and brilliantly acted by principals.
Mark H. gave it a3:
The film tries so hard to be politically incorrect and indie odd that it comes across as a parody of itself. The illogical story lines and impossible timing of events make this an unbearable and embarassing movie to sit through.
t r gave it a10:
Great actors, terrific atmosphere and a humor blacker than the night, so it´s just a great film.
Bill T. gave it a9:
Excellent and brooding dark comedy, with well defined characters and good performances from the main 5/6 actors, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie.
