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‘The Banshees of Inisherin’ Review: Giving Your Friend the Finger

Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson play feuding frenemies in Martin McDonagh’s latest film, set on an Irish coast in 1923.

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By A.O. Scott

The island of Inisherin, a rustic windswept rock off the coast of Ireland, does not appear on any real-world maps, but its geography is unmistakable. Not only because the sweaters and the sheep, the pints of Guinness and the thatched roofs bespeak a carefully curated Irish authenticity, but also because what happens on this island locates it firmly in an imaginary region that might be called County McDonagh.

This is a place, governed by the playful and perverse sensibility of the dramatist and filmmaker Martin McDonagh, where the picturesque and the profane intermingle, where jaunty humor keeps company with gruesome violence. The boundaries of the realm extend from Spokane, Wash ., to the Belgian city of Bruges by way of Missouri and various actual and notional Irish spots. “The Banshees of Inisherin,” McDonagh’s new film, embellishes the cartography without necessarily breaking new ground. It’s a good place to start if you’re new to his work, and cozily — which is also to say horrifically — familiar if you’re already a fan.

Other McDonagh hallmarks include a breakneck, swaybacked plot, by turns hilarious and grim, painted over with a nearly invisible varnish of sentimentality. It’s not necessary to believe what you see — it may, indeed, not be possible — but you can nonetheless find yourself beguiled by the wayward sincerity of the characters and touched by the sparks of humanity their struggles cast off. And impressed by the craft of the actors and the crew (which here includes the cinematographer Ben Davis, the composer Carter Burwell and the costume designer Eimer Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh). Perhaps above all, you are apt to be tickled, sometimes to gales of laughter, by the spray of verbal wit that characterizes the McDonagh dialect.

It’s 1923, though modernity has dawdled a bit en route to Inisherin, where rural life proceeds at its immemorial pace. On the mainland, the Irish Civil War drags on; distant gunfire can sometimes be heard across the water. The islanders pay it very little mind, and don’t see any point to taking a side. The local constable (Gary Lydon), a dull, violent brute and the closest thing to a pure villain this movie possesses, is pleased to have been recruited to assist in an execution. He doesn’t know or care whether the National Army or the I.R.A. is responsible for the killing. He’s content to gawk and get paid.

“Banshees,” in any case, is concerned with an intensely local conflict, between Padraic (Colin Farrell), a sociable cow herder, and Colm (Brendan Gleeson), a melancholy fiddler. They have been drinking together nearly every afternoon at the local shebeen for as long as anyone can remember, until Colm abruptly and unilaterally declares an end to their friendship. “I just don’t like you no more,” he tells Padraic, who responds with wounded incredulity.

Colm is quite serious. Every time Padraic dares to talk to him, he vows, he will cut off one of his own fingers. This shocking, irrational threat — a violinist promising to sever himself from his art — gives the story a queasy momentum. Even after the digits start to fly — Colm flings them at the door of Padraic’s cottage — it’s hard for Padraic or the audience to accept what’s happening, let alone understand it.

What is Colm’s problem? He may be a bit more worldly than his neighbors. The masks and other objects that decorate his house suggest an acquaintance with — or maybe just a curiosity about — the world beyond the island. Gleeson plays him as a storm cloud in a billowing overcoat, an artist whose temperament is at once too delicate and too volatile for his surroundings. The parish priest worries that he’s prone to the sin of despair, which sounds simplistic but not entirely inaccurate.

Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell in a darkened bar.

You can understand how Colm might be annoyed with Padraic — part of Farrell’s charm is that he’s always at least a little bit annoying — and that Colm is desperate for a change in his routine. He’s composing a new tune, and time spent with a trifling drinking buddy threatens to distract him from this potential masterpiece. Still, self-mutilation seems a bit extreme.

Not necessarily in McDonagh’s world. (See also: “A Behanding in Spokane.” ) Colm and Padraic are flanked by sundry other Inisherinites, human and otherwise. Colm lives with a patient Border collie. Padraic, surrounded by livestock of various kinds, is especially attached to a miniature donkey named Jenny. He also lives with his put-upon, sensible sister, Siobhan (Kerry Condon), who quietly dreams of leaving Inisherin, and sometimes passes the time with Dominic (Barry Keoghan), the intellectually challenged son of that dastardly constable.

Some of these creatures are marked out for tragedy — a witchy old widow prophesies general doom whenever she passes someone on the road or stops in for tea — and McDonagh doles out misery and humor with an expert hand.

“The Banshees of Inisherin” might feel a little thin if you hold it to conventional standards of comedy or drama. It’s better thought of as a piece of village gossip, given a bit of literary polish and a handsome pastoral finish. Inisherin may not be a real place, but its eccentric characters, rugged vistas and vivid local legends make it an attractive tourist destination all the same.

The Banshees of Inisherin Rated R. Salty language and bloody deeds. Running time: 1 hour 49 minutes. In theaters.

An earlier version of this article misspelled the name of the miniature donkey to which Colin Farrell’s character is attached in “The Banshees of Inisherin.” She is Jenny, not Jennie.

When we learn of a mistake, we acknowledge it with a correction. If you spot an error, please let us know at [email protected] . Learn more

A.O. Scott is a co-chief film critic. He joined The Times in 2000 and has written for the Book Review and The New York Times Magazine. He is also the author of “Better Living Through Criticism.” More about A.O. Scott

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A farmer gets dumped by his best friend in 'The Banshees of Inisherin'

Justin Chang

Colin Farrell plays a sweet-souled farmer whose best (human) friend abruptly dumps him in The Banshees of Inisherin. Jonathan Hession/Searchlight Pictures hide caption

Colin Farrell plays a sweet-souled farmer whose best (human) friend abruptly dumps him in The Banshees of Inisherin.

Because we as a culture can mistakenly equate beauty with shallowness, it's taken time for some to realize what a great actor Colin Farrell is. He's always been a charismatic screen presence, though in recent years he's revealed striking new emotional depths as a leading man in movies like The Lobster and this year's After Yang . He's also proved willing to bury his good looks under mounds of prosthetics as the villainous Penguin in The Batman .

Farrell gives what may be his strongest performance yet in The Banshees of Inisherin , and one of the reasons he's so good in it is that he's playing a character who, perhaps like Farrell himself, is used to being underestimated. His character, Pádraic, is a sweet-souled farmer who's spent his entire life on Inisherin, a small, fictional island off the coast of Ireland.

It's 1923, and life here is simple and repetitive, which is why it sends off small shockwaves one day when Colm, Pádraic's older best friend, refuses to join him for their usual afternoon pint down at the pub. He soon learns that Colm, who's played by Brendan Gleeson, has decided to end their decades-long friendship with nary a word of explanation.

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Brendan gleeson, on 'guard' as a small-town cop.

In time, the truth comes out: Colm finds Pádraic dull, and is tired of listening to the younger man's endless yammering — especially since it keeps Colm from pursuing his passion: playing and composing violin music.

Gleeson is terrific at showing you the tenderness beneath his outward stoicism, and what's heartbreaking is that Colm does still like Pádraic — but he also knows that their friendship is draining him. But Pádraic can't accept Colm's decision. He tries cajoling his former friend, then pleading with him, then badgering him.

At one point, Colm becomes so irritated that he threatens to physically harm himself if Pádraic doesn't leave him alone. And since this is a movie written and directed by Martin McDonagh, the British Irish playwright and filmmaker with a taste for baroque comic violence, you know it isn't an idle threat.

This movie isn't as grisly as some of McDonagh's earlier stage and screen works — I still have fond memories of seeing his blood-soaked play The Lieutenant of Inishmore years ago, and somewhat less fond memories of his Oscar-winning film Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri . Compared with that movie's wildly uneven mix of comedy and tragedy, The Banshees of Inisherin is a quieter, gentler work, but its melancholy also cuts much deeper. McDonagh opens the story with gorgeous, postcard-worthy images of Inisherin, all lush green landscapes and even a rainbow in the sky. But by the end, he has quashed any sweet or sentimental thoughts we might harbor toward this isolated community, where people can be spiteful and small-minded and mock those who want to leave or strive for something better.

Few people know this as well as Pádraic's bookish sister, Siobhan, played by a terrific Kerry Condon. She loves her brother dearly, flaws and all. She's also one of the few people in town who can connect with Colm intellectually, and she understands why he wants to be left alone.

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There are other colorful supporting characters, too: a nasty policeman, a doom-prophesying old woman and an annoying young man played, with marvelous pathos, by Barry Keoghan. And I haven't even mentioned the animal cast: Two of the movie's most important characters are Colm's pet collie and Pádraic's pet donkey, noble creatures who put the pettiness and stupidity of humans to shame.

There's something a little glib about that idea — and also about the way The Banshees of Inisherin uses the Irish Civil War, raging in the background of the story, as a counterpoint to the conflict between Pádraic and Colm. But there's nothing glib about how these two characters are written. To watch Farrell and Gleeson rage against each other is to better understand what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object. It's been a while since a movie extracted this much drama from the end of a beautiful friendship.

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User reviews

The Banshees of Inisherin

Two lifelong friends find themselves at an impasse when one abruptly ends their relationship, with alarming consequences for both of them. Two lifelong friends find themselves at an impasse when one abruptly ends their relationship, with alarming consequences for both of them. Two lifelong friends find themselves at an impasse when one abruptly ends their relationship, with alarming consequences for both of them.

Martin McDonagh
Colin Farrell
Brendan Gleeson
Kerry Condon
1.1K User reviews
351 Critic reviews
87 Metascore
147 wins & 369 nominations total

Top cast 20

Pádraic Súilleabháin

Colm Doherty

Siobhán Súilleabháin

Jonjo Devine
Peadar Kearney

Dominic Kearney
Mrs. McCormick
Older Musician 1
Older Musician 2
Female Singer
(as Lasairfhíona Ní Chonaola)

Mrs. O'Riordan

Student Musician 1
Student Musician 2
Student Musician 3
All cast & crew
Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Colin Farrell Reunites With Brendan Gleeson

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Trivia All of the main characters' sweaters were made by the same elderly woman, Delia Barry. She knitted them by hand specifically for the film, including doubles for each sweater. She was not present on set, and did not meet the actors prior to creating the pieces for them. Barry stated one of Colin Farrell's sweaters took 100 hours to complete.
Goofs In the first scene in Colm's cottage, an old phonograph with a horn is seen, and heard playing a record. The record is spinning at 33 1/3 RPM, instead of 78 RPM, which was the ONLY speed used to play records in the early 1920's. The slower speed was not used until LP records were introduced in the late 1940s.

Priest : Do you think God gives a damn about miniature donkeys, Colm?

Colm Doherty : I fear he doesn't. And I fear that's where it's all gone wrong.

Connections Featured in CBC News: Toronto: Episode dated 16 September 2022 (2022)
Soundtracks The Banshees of Inisherin Written and Performed by Brendan Gleeson Performances also include Conor Connolly , James Carty , and Ryan Owens