"In Bruges" is a dark, sardonic, and intriguing dramedy, featuring excellent performances from its three top-billed actors.

In Bruges is a phenomenal film. It's unbelievably funny, smart, touching and exciting. Basically speaking, this movie is possibly the best British gangster movie ever made... Oh and Bruges is beautifully shot, too.

Two hitmen are sent to Bruges to "get out of the way" for a couple of weeks.
It reminded me of a sort Father Ted doing hitmen for the first part of the film then it gets a bit darker.
Some great one liners & good performances all round.
Never been to Bruges but looks absolutely beautiful.

There are a lot of comic moments in this film, mainly in the form of the things Ray says and does. Few films make me laugh out loud, but this one did in more than a couple of places. The drama comes mainly in the final third and I found this put a much darker complexion on the comedic scenes that preceded it. I liked the ending; it seemed quite poetic in a way (sorry, no clues). Over all, a very enjoyable film with some laughs, excellent cinematography and some great performances… Expand

What a surprising movie! You are getting the impression that almost nothing happen in the first half, but the action increase more and more till the end. A very well played scenario, especially by Brendan Gleeson. The dramatic-comic situation are were wisely place during the plot. All in all, it is a move it is worth to see.

Funny, melancholy film with great performances from Gleeson and an unexpectedly excellent Farrell, whose childlike wonder at the sight of a real midget seemed quite genuine. And Bruges looked like a painting which somehow conveys extremes of temperature. Aside from the slightly ersatz note struck by Ralph Fiennes' character (odd casting that: Fiennes is too posh to be a thug), this was an assured and engaging film.… Expand

The film is just perfect. Destined to be a cult, well balanced between dark humor (very funny) and blood thrilling scenes. The climax that rises from the first scene to the end probably touches its peak when the music of The Dubliners gives the film its epic touch. Colin Farrel and Brendan Gleeson are perfect in their roles. Can't think of anything that goes wrong. Masterpiece!

A morality tale delivered with laughs and blood. The humor veers between smart and surreal. The movie was brilliantly acted by Brendan Gleeson, with a strong performance by Colin Farrell, and a slightly overwrought performance by Ralph Fiennes. Ralph Fiennes, alone among the actors, appeared to try to play the part for laughs. And alone among the actors, he failed. The movie is marred by profanity and gore which will limit its appeal, which is sad because it is a true gem. It also has odd references to blacks, which made me a bit uncomfortable watching, and may have made me yet more uncomfortable were I black. I think the story intended to deal with racism in the same brutal yet light way in which it dealt with courage, redemption and second chances. It did not work. The few offending scenes are a bit like pimples on an otherwise likable countenance.… Expand

Great actors and a wonderful setting. It's been a long time since I enjoyed the atmosphere and the sense of humor of a movie that much.

A fine little movie! A very black comedy that makes you laugh out loud without quite knowing why.

Awkward mashup of grave moral dilemmas with dialogue that strains itself trying to be shockingly un-PC. For all the racist, midget, molestation etc. jokes, I never felt shocked so much as embarrassed for the actors reciting such groan-worthy material. Farrell's caterpillar eyebrows provide the most action this movie has to offer. The running gag of making fun of Bruges (often by simply saying, "We're in Bruges!") was old at 10 minutes in, but dragged on for what felt like much longer than its running time. The movie draws a line through the middleground of "dark comedy" and leaps gracelessly back and forth across it, never managing an inspired balance between them like Pulp Fiction. An incohesive, grating bore with an ending that will leave you shocked at its predictability--so they did at least manage to get in one shocker!… Expand

While indecisive in trying to be both a comedy and, ultimately, a bloodbath, Bruges has great highs, some lowbrow humor, and great lows.

Absolutely the freshest, funniest and most poignant movie of the season. And, strangely enough, the most hopeful movie about man's capacity for second chances and doing the right thing. Colin Farrell is a joy to watch him at the top of his game. Brendan Gleason is perfect. Seeing Ralph Fiennes going over the top as the crime boss is delicious. Martin McDonough is the new cinematic voice.

Nicely black comedy. The wordplay is great, as the two protagonists cool off in the charming, boring city of Bruges.

Although still February, will almost certainly make by "Best of 2008" list. Funny, clever, well-written, but not too over-the-top. Definitely influenced by "Pulp Fiction" and "Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels." Professional critics who didn't like this film are clueless.

Engaging plot for a fairly bloody action picture. Brendan Gleeson is a real treat and his buddy combo with Colin Farrell has some nice chemistry. Ralph Fiennes in a role that will surprise you. Voldemort has definitely gone to his head. Interesting twist ending. We saw a sneak preview and it was the weirdest crowd in recent memory. They laughed uproariously at jokes that were only mildly funny. Must have been McDonagh's cousins. Give it a look and enjoy the odd juxtaposition of comedy and brutality.… Collapse

If Hieronymus Bosch were alive and making movies instead of painting, he would make "In Bruges". Strange, brutal at times, beautiful at times, unpredictable and fascinating.

A surprisingly funny, engaging plot, with a superb performance by an otherwise inconsistent Colin Farrell. The movie's focus around Bruges was very interesting, and the dialogue between Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell throughout was quite compelling. Some parts of the movie were a little confusing, however, in that the viewer didn't necessarily know whether to laugh or feel sad.

This film is hilarious. And it is also very dark and gro. The progression through the story is extremely well-wrought. One of the best films I have seen this year. Seriously hilarious.

While darkly humorous at times, the movie never quite lifted off the ground for me. Odd, bloody, and drawn out. A much different film than it's trailers portray.

Best film of 2008 so far. This superb film has an incredibly complex message about the power of violence and nonviolence, and layers of depth which many critics seem to miss (did they noticed Chloe's speech "homage is too strong a word" compares the movie within a movie to Don't Look Now, the movie of which In Bruges itself is a pastiche). It's also hilarious.

I whole heartedly agree with Roger Ebert on this film. Outstanding. A dark comedy with great dialogue and characters. Far from PC, but never the less a thoroughly enjoyable experience. I saw this almost by accident and enjoyed it more than any movie I have seen in the past year. Where did it go? No one else I know has even heard of it. It reminded me of the Great Santini, which disappeared until the film lovers brought it back.… Expand

An excellent film, went with little or no preconceptions and thoroughly enjoyed it. One of the best films I have seen this year, laugh out loud funny in places, emotionally stirring in others. The two Irish leads are superb, Farrell gives a great, unexpectedly low key, performance. For those who know Father Ted, he's a bit Father Dougall at times! All in all a great piece of cinema and one of those films you are bound to tell your friends to go see.… Expand

Really boring to watch, there's little to no sexual appeal from what I saw and no action to be found. Not really that funny either it's just Collin Ferrel nothing special. Avoid this crap.

An exercise in genre blending which is second to none.

Not quite the action packed movie the cover box describes, but it is a good dark comedy/drama. The cast is very good, but the slow pace gets tedious at times. Good location filming.

Absolutely brilliant filmmaking, cleverly written with beautiful cinematography. The end is a bit much to stomach, but completely appropriate and fitting.

It wasn't what I expected. And that's why I give it 9. I was freaking surprised after this movie. It was genius. Very good dialogues, beautiful scenery, dark humor, interesting plot. Definetely a must see, especially now when there are not that much good dvds to rent.

This film is impossible to label.It's action , drama, comedy, buddy film ,all in different proportions. I thought it was entertaining and well worth seeing.

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.

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.

Excellent and brooding dark comedy, with well defined characters and good performances from the main 5/6 actors, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie.

Great actors, terrific atmosphere and a humor blacker than the night, so it´s just a great film.

I found this movie to be mediocre. The plot was decent, but the movie was quite slow-paced and dragging along at time. Colin acted quite well in it though the whole thing about ragging on Bruges just didn't make any sense. The humor was no ha-ha, from my perspective, but a chuckle here and there. All in all, I would recommend waiting for a DVD on this one.

Bad acting, unlikeable and underdeveloped characters , bizarre and stupid situations, too much blood, ridiculous ending. Wanted to walk out before the end but kept hoping for a memorable or meaningful twist that never materialized. A big waste of $19.00!. My husband and I were both disappointed in this move, but the one good thing about it was that we learned something about Bruges and would like to visit there someday.… Expand

In Bruges is a superb morality play set in a very dark comedy. The pace is fast, the dialogue crisp (if a bit too profane) and the actors timing is on the money.

Excellent movie. Engaging, well-acted, written, and directed, with an oddly transcendent feel.

I thought the movie was great. The dialogue was funny and touching. My favorite was Brendan Gleeson. Quite bloody towards the end, but worthy of the 8 I gave it.

It had fabulous cinematography, crisp dialogue, and morally ambiguous characters. The delightful plot was completely unpredictable. the only thing missing was a memorable soundtrack.

A really entertaining movie, with a real good balance of high and low brow comedy. A bit heavy handed at the end, but that sin is easily absolved by what proceeds it.

Hey, who knew... Collin Farrell can act! I'm guessing he was sober, that and playing an ineffectual type, but whatever, he holds his own with a magnificent Brendan Gleeson and a very good Ralph Fiennes. You have to suspend a lot of disbelief, but the style covers almost all of it and the intelligent and just damn fine artistic writing (as well as quite capable direction) of playwright Martin McDonagh makes it all very special and worth seeing.… Expand

Two thumbs up for In Bruges.

The funniest dialogue I've heard in a long time. The chemistry between Farrell and Gleeson was totally believable and the quirky supporting characters were compelling as well. I saw it twice in three days and laughed almost as much during the second viewing as I did the first. As for the darkness at the heart of the tale, it hit just as hard as the laughs. Yeah, there was lots of profanity but, given the circumstances, it was fitting. I highly recommend this film.… Expand

This was movie that couldn't have come at a better time. In the never ending stream of boring, apathetic movies this one shines through with hilarious dialogue and dark humor. The dwarf/midget (i have no idea what's socially acceptable) is a fantastic combination in the end of the movie. Couldn't have been better

This was much better than I initially thought it was going to be. Colin Farrell's character was fleshed out just enough to make the story compelling and the ending was substantial enough to even out the ambiguity. See it in the theater if you have a strong interest.

In a nutshell I liked this movie. The acting, the dialogue all worked for me, much of it smart, funny, amusing, unexpected or surreal. I did not expect to laugh at a film about hitmen. The surreal element to the whole thing seemed to balance the sheer ridiculousness of some of the non-PC topics. There was no way to take this seriously but just to enjoy the ride to the somewhat over-the-top ending which was a bit much for me but the preceding scenes were worth it. Colin Farrell played … Expand

Being Irish, I was so ashamed by this movie. It takes cheap shots at any ethnic group, physical disability, and allows the characters to make fun. There's a joke about the Belgian murders. It's all about making fun of midgets, beating up women, shooting kids, hating Belgium, beating down Americans, and being generally foreign-phobic. It's not overtly racist, because they have an angry midget to be the racist mouthpiece. I couldn't stick it anymore, and left just before the end, and I've never done that before. You can see that it's influenced by Pulp Fiction, but it's nowhere near as good. This movie is disgracefully bad, and if you have the slightest PC bone in your body, then skip it.… Expand

One of the best films I've ever seen. Not only are there some great jokes, but it also makes you think about some important issues; should murderers be allowed a chance for redemption? How strong are your principals? McDonagh is, in my opinion the best living playwright, and this film demonstrates that he is as talented writer for screen as for stage. Fecking brilliant.

Very cool, great dialogs, great script, perfect.

Fine script, good acting, Farrell as a bad guy, solid crew. But ending is over-egged (rating - 9/10 or even 10/10 without ending; in this case - solid 8!) Recommended!

Not what I was expecting at all. The Story: Two hitmen are sent to Bruges in order to hide out... An expected call from the boss though, results in unexpected orders, for an otherwise expected outcome. It's kind of a character study in that there's a significant amount of time learning what makes these characters tick, the problem is, that (on first viewing at least) there's not much too the characters... Ray feels guilty for his past and spends most of the film trying to figure out if he deserves to live. Ken, mesmerized by the wonderland that is Bruges, finds himself worried about his friend, taking it upon himself to save his partners soul. Conflicted by the moral issues that surround his current situation and job... And than there's Harry. The boss. He's a villain that you know deep down inside you can't hate because he makes a valid point, one must pay for their own actions, accidental or not. He's not evil, though he's not nice either, he's not good but he's not bad, and you're not going to be rooting for him. The Cast: Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Ralph Fiennes... Colin Farrell is Ray, guilt stricken by a hit gone terribly awry. He gives a good performance as he's eternally conflicted, he's not a man, but he feels deeply ashamed of himself for his past actions, so doesn't that mean that he should be forgiven? Or is he hopeless because he's done the unthinkable? Solid performance from start to finish. Brendan Gleeson is Ken, stuck between a rock and a hard place hit his partner or save his soul, giving him a second chance? Arguably the best performance in the film. Ralph Fiennes is Harry, a firm believer that some actions deserve certain consequences no matter what the circumstance. You know he has a heart and you know that on some level he is in fact right, but you're wishing he's wrong the entire time. Great performance, but not his best. Probably the first time that a trailer has truly influenced my score... There's no disagreeing that the trailer is about as misleading as you can possibly get. The trailer has you believing that Guy Ritchie has some competition. It's fast, it's clever, it's stylish, it's funny, and it's full of quirky or offbeat characters... The film itself is slowpaced, sometimes predictable and nowhere near as complex as you're expecting, as the quirky characters often add little to nothing to the story... I'm giving it the benefit of the doubt, I only watched it once expecting a fast paced Snatch type film, really hoping to see another Guy Ritchie on the horizon... The second time around I'm sure it will be immensely better.… Expand

Very surprised by this movie. Best movie I have seen in a long time. I watched it twice back-to-back. It has some hilarious moments and Colin Farrell is great. Well written with a great story...definitely worth the rental...even worth buying!

Martin McDonagh, an award winning playwright, scores big-time with his debut full length feature. The film portrays two hit men hiding out in the historical Belgian city of Bruges after carrying out a gruesomely sloppy hit back home in England. It's hard to believe that a flick about such an event could possibly turn out to be charming (as well as a number of other things), but McDonagh and an excellent cast pull it off. The result is black comedy as its absolute best. My only problem was some difficulty with the thick British accents (Cockney?) that denied me even further laughs and enjoyment of the extraordinary dialogue. Be on the lookout for this gifted director's future work!… Expand

One can't ask more of a film than gorgeous cinematography, a brilliant script and actors whose performance delves deep and perfectly carries the multifaceted, rich dark humor clothed in a perfect story.

Best of the year. and brilliantly acted by principals.

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.… Expand

A great script, quirky characters, a lot of good laughs and Colin Ferrell raises his acting abilities to be able to play opposite the great Brendan Gleeson. You'll find it all in In Bruges, the best black comedy I've seen in years!

A hitman might not be the keenest judge of character. Congenial or not, Ken(Brendan Gleeson) is a sociopath. The company he keeps are other hitmen, like Ray(Colin Farrell), Ken's charge, who just recently shot a Catholic preist. But there was an accident. There was collateral damage. For all the un-PC humor in "In Bruges", perhaps the funniest thing about this lively film is the tacit agreement between filmmaker and audience that the dead clergyman be forgotten. We're judging Ray solely on how he reacts to the second body. "In Bruges" cons the audience into feeling sorry for a man who had recently shot a man of God in cold blood. If there is such a thing as honor among hitmen, Ray is no hitman(as Ken pointed out), because he has no honor, which precludes his occupation and the occupational hazards that go with it. Ken was wrong about Ray. He withholds a key tidbit of information from Harry(Ralph Fiennes) at the end of "In Bruges" which would've brought honor to his mentor(Ken). Like samurai, Harry lives and dies by the code. Earlier, when Ray points the gun to his own head, he was probably only bluffing.… Expand

Can you say underrated. This movie is probably the best of 2008 so far. IT is smart, dark, funny, and witty, and needs some recognition. Some people don't understand the ending, but it suits this film perfectly. The best hitman movie since Pulp Fiction.

I wasn't really impressed by this film. Who could identify with any of the characters? The "action" is somewhat formulaic. The story line isn't that interesting. The best part is Bruges, the city itself.

Holy crap. what an amazing surprise. I can see why this film had a hard time marketing itself b/c it doesn't lend itself to slick one-liners at all. As others have said, tightly, tightly written, very well acted--genre busting story that works on so many layers it's just ridiculous! You get a drama/comedy/action-thriller/ biblical fairytale. In Bruge. rent this thing now.

This movie is the funniest thing I've seen in years! Hmmmm, maybe the black humor has a little to do with the British losing hundreds of thousands (in Belgium and Holland and freakin' France) fighting the Nazis during WWII while the Belgians and their ilk hid under their mommie's dresses.

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.

Certainly one of the best movies ever in the genre...so dark,poignant and powerful. with endless surprises. screenplay is fresh & directing is just brilliant and carter bruwells amazing soundtrack makes a deep atmosphere.... Farrell ,Brendan Gleeson & Fiennes made a real great team. in my eyes play writing master Martin McDonaghs first long movie is an independent timeless masterpiece
And in one word "Everything Is In Right Place"… Expand