The Boondock Saints [Blu-ray]

Sean Patrick Flannery and Norman Reedus play two good ole Irish Catholic boys in Boston, who one day get sick of the corruption in the city and begin a bloody crusade to wipe it out. Willem DaFoe plays the FBI agent hot on their trail, who is torn between bringing the mysterious vigilantes to justice, or joining their crusade.

The film is, simply put, cool. Its one of the only movies that actually make going to church look cool. Don't be fooled by the description, however; this is not an action movie. Do not expect blazing gun battles with crazy angles and MTV like editing. This is a film about morality, doing what one thinks is right, and having codes of honour. It's about all those things, and how close they may sometimes get to walking the edge between good and evil.

The two actors who play the Irish vigilantes are great in their roles, playing the boys not as superheroes, but as regular joes with a huge chip on their shoulder. A nice twist in the film is DaFoe's portrayel of the FBI agent, who also happens to be gay. He plays him as a great character without being tempted to dip into stereotypes. Great job by the versatile actor.

This is definately a movie not to be missed. If you are fortunate to see this in your video store, take it out and enjoy.


It's a winner   January 17, 2004
Jeffrey Leach (Omaha, NE USA)
125 out of 161 found this review helpful

It only takes a few minutes to draw a comparison between Troy Duffy's "The Boondock Saints" and almost any Quentin Tarentino film. As I watched this breathtaking movie, I snickered to myself over realizing this little fact. I figured few others would make the connection. Boy, was I wrong! It seems that anyone who has seen "Boondock Saints" immediately thinks of "Pulp Fiction" or "Reservoir Dogs." Moreover, a lot of people do not like the idea of Duffy ripping off such a noble American icon. Perhaps they have forgotten that Tarentino has based his entire career on borrowing or outright ripping off ideas from 1960s and 1970s cinema. I could care less whether Duffy imitated "Pulp Fiction" or whether he arrived at this idea on his own. Hollywood routinely begs, borrows, and steals in an effort to make a buck. The recent trend of remaking older films is only one aspect of this philosophy, so complaining about some filmmaker copying a specific style is a moot point. "The Boondock Saints" is an enormously entertaining way to spend a couple of hours and, despite a few flaws, may attain a cult status rivaling anything made by Quentin Tarentino. This is how it should be.

Connor and Murphy MacManus (Sean Patrick Flanery and Norman Reedus respectively) are two Irish brothers who spend their days drinking at the local pub and working in a local meatpacking plant. They don't do much with their free time outside of lounging around their filthy loft and hanging around with unbalanced people like their friend David Rocco, a minor criminal who longs to join the local branch of the mafia. Trouble rears its ugly head when some Russian gangsters move into the neighborhood and threaten to close down the neighborhood bar. After a fistfight leads to a couple of killings in an alley, the boys realize they may be in a spot of trouble with local law enforcement. Actually, they are in more trouble than they realize at first when an FBI agent by the name of Paul Smecker arrives on the scene. The inept local cops stand around throwing out all sorts of weird, implausible theories about these corpses in the alleyway, but Smecker moves in and figures it all out in an enormously hilarious and ingenious way. By slapping on some headphones pumping out classical music and prancing around the scene checking things out, Smecker tells the cops what happened, when it happened, and who probably did it. Sure enough, the MacManus boys sheepishly arrive at the local cop shop, bloodied and bandaged from their tussle with the Russkies, and confess to the crime.

Fortunately for Connor and Murphy, Agent Smecker takes a real shine to these gregarious youngsters and releases them from jail. After all, the whole incident was merely a case of self-defense gone horribly bloody. But something strange happens to the MacManus brothers after this incident; they suddenly think they receive a calling from God to rid the streets of criminals. Checking in at the local armory of the Irish Republican Army (this is Boston, after all) and arming themselves to the teeth, Connor and Murphy use information gleaned from their encounter with the low-level mafia goons to stage a mission against the bosses of the Russian Mob. Other jobs soon follow, all apparently sanctioned and sanctified by the Almighty. The boys are so successful they soon draw in the assistance of David Rocco, who, with his vast knowledge of Boston's underworld, provides a list of criminals who deserve to die. As the body count rises, Smecker comes closer to learning the identities of these homegrown vigilantes. The fact that the FBI agent undergoes a crisis of conscience over the crimes--he quickly realizes these murders are the work of citizens fed up with crime--leads him to secretly help the men responsible for the killings. Throw in a bunch of Mafia thugs, adult film star Ron Jeremy as a doomed hoodlum, a vicious, mystical killer named "Il Duce" (played by Billy Connolly, still atoning for "Head of the Class"), stylish gunplay, and an exploding cat and you have all the makings of this marvelous movie.

"The Boondock Saints" is a film about vigilantism and whether that activity is ever justifiable, although that theme seems to disappear for most of the movie. The conclusion, too, ends up being just a little too implausible, but getting there is a boatload of fun. The best things about Duffy's film are the whipsaw quick dialogue, the hilarious running gags, and Willem Dafoe as Agent Paul Smecker. Dafoe especially deserves accolades for his portrayal of a conflicted FBI agent whose sympathies eventually turn to the MacManus brothers. His way of solving crimes, especially the shootout between Il Duce and the two vigilantes, is not only brilliantly executed but a wonder to watch. Moreover, Smecker's interactions with the local Irish cops provide endless opportunities for great dialogue and hilarious jokes.

Regrettably, a bit of overacting at certain points of the film quickly annoys, as does the failure to provide anything more than lip service to vigilantism and how it pertains to our ultra violent world, but "The Boondock Saints" is so much fun despite these flaws that you will hardly notice them. The DVD includes many extras, such as important deleted scenes, a commentary by Troy Duffy, and a widescreen presentation. There's even talk of an impending sequel, although the absence of the Willem Dafoe character, if the reports are true, could cause significant problems. There is not any other way to say it: if you have not seen "The Boondock Saints," run, do not walk, to the local video store and buy or rent a copy today.


Pretty Good for a movie I'd never heard of.   August 3, 2003
Bigflu (WV)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful

I watched this on a recommendation, and was not disappointed. Willem Dafoe's performance as the homosexual FBI special agent was incredible. Never before have I seen an actor go that far for a role ..... and appear to enjoy it so much.

The story is about two Irish brothers who beleive they are are on a religious "crusade" of sorts to rid the city of the entire Russian mob. They remain one step ahead of the police and Dafoe almost every step of the way. The way that some of the scenes were shot involving the crime scene shootouts was quite original. The meshing of the actual shootout scene with Dafoe's reinactments to the police was brilliantly done. Completely captivating.

I highly recommend this film to any fan of Pulp Fiction, Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrells, Snatch, Fight Club, or any other movie with a cast of interesting characters and an involving plot such as these.


How can you not love this movie?   June 19, 2004
Patrick Michelson (Houston, TX)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful

If you are looking for genius film making, then this is not your movie. If you are looking for an epic tale with beautiful landscapes, then this is not your film. If you are looking for a movie with more plot twists and turns that a windy mountain road, then this is not your film. The thing is... it never promised to be those things. This is a movie that appeals to the "we could kill everbody" aspect inside of every male. (It is my experience that women loathe this movie.) It will also appeal to your ideals of justice and make you ask "what if?" The movie is also incredibly quote-worthy. Being a sucker for good dialogue, that makes or breaks a movie for me.


The message.   May 3, 2006
A.M. Coverston (San Jose, San Jose Costa Rica)
50 out of 66 found this review helpful

I hold this movie as one of my all-time favorites.

The movie itself is far from perfect, but it doesn't take itself too seriously, which certainly makes it go easier on those who would otherwise bash it for its b-movie qualities.

On another note, a reviewer here seems to have focused on the "retribution" meted by the main characters as being the gist of the story. I beg to differ, however, as it would seem to me that the subtext points a finger at the indifference which plagues our society and how the very system is rotting from foundation to seams. Sure, for action movie purposes, the film makers went with the extreme of taking justice into one's own hands, but there's more to the movie than just "an eye for an eye". One might even argue that the "saints" come out to be the replacement for our current, corrupt law enforcement officials. A new institution replacing another that has become obsolete.

In any case, the movie is very good and is at least worth a couple of views so as to appreciate its nuances.