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On my stroll down a snowy Grand Avenue toward a twilight screening of "In Bruges," I began to fancy myself with possible titles for this blog entry.  Upon sitting on my seat in the auditorium, I settled on "Bruging The Elements."  What a find.

Martin McDonagh's new film, a surprising dark comedy, is being shortlisted by many American moviegoers because of its routine, British-tongue-in-cheek-aren't-we-dandy theatrical trailer.  I'm not going to be coy: though the trailer is on my iPod (what new trailer isn't?) it was so underwhelming that I was convinced Jason Statham was in it.

He's not.

Pronounced IN BROOOOJJJHHH (rhymes with the 'rouge' in "Moulin Rouge"), the film stars Colin Farrell in another excellent turn (following his role in the heavily overlooked "Cassandra's Dream" from last month) as a regretful and borderline suicidal first-time hitman who is ordered to hide, along with his associate Ken (played by the always award-worthy Brendan Gleeson), in the medieval city of Bruges after his rookie kill assignment went terribly wrong.  Obviously Ray (Farrell) is uneasy: not only is Bruges uninteresting and placid, but Ken seems to annoyingly enjoy it, and to top it all off, the two are to stay put in their shared hotel room until they get a ring from their big boss.  Ray would rather take his chances in the nearby pub to drown his sorrows.

The opening scenes in the film are a bit too drawn out; long silences on a river canoe, blank expressions of Farrell's face while sightseeing the historic edifices.  I wasn't convinced that I wanted to finish watching the movie. 

Then a flashback happens (part of which is stupidly shown in the theatrical trailer) and the second wave of surprise in that flashback (a morbidly funny twist) helps put some dramatic weight in the convictions of the Farrell character and turn all of his whining and crying he had done up until then on its head; he was drowning in quiet desperation all this time.

It's great that the film takes the time to show some actual artwork found in Bruges.  There is a crucial shot, close to the flashback scene, of a mural of a man playing cards with a skeleton in a toga-like garment (closely resembling the figure of 'Death') that Ray is looking at while he is near the worst of his depression.  Essentially, it is the representation of the film, or at least the themes it deals with; predominantly the conflicting matters of knowing you deserve to die and actually having the balls to go through with dying. 

I don't know any professional hitman like the characters Farrell and Gleeson play in the film, but I've seen enough hitmen films now to appreciate a movie like "In Bruges" for it's heartful take on the profession.  Some of these fucking guys have to be feeling guilty after awhile.  Not everyone is the stone-wallin' Leon character from "The Professional."

Killing for hire parallels the card game with death.  Sure most of the time no one can call your bluff; you're in and you're out, no hard feelings.  But sometimes death has a higher hand, and you've already pushed in all your chips on a suited pair.  You'll never know what that higher hand was, only that you lost.  And now you're dead.

Speaking of death personified, there's also Ralph Fiennes.  He plays Harry, the boss that's supposed to call their hotel room.  Once he shows up in Bruges, the real excitement starts (Academy take note, here's your first frontrunner in this year's Supporting Actor race).  Though, now that I think about it, the Harry character isn't so much death personified as he is a religious fighter sent by Bill Paxton in "Frailty."  Fiennes brilliantly articulates the dilemma of having to accept the fate of death while talking to Gleeson.  Their initial sitdown exchange is worth the price of admission alone.

So what does it all mean?  I don't know.  Some people in the film died for no reason.  Some died because they deserved and knew they did.  And some died because they thought they had to--even if it's not the case.

I guess the lesson is to not use head-exploding bullets.

Regardless, the film is hugely enjoyable and even when it runs a little messy (in sappiness and red-goo blood) we forgive it.  Midgets have feelings too.