The Boondock Saints

Released: 1999
MPAA rating: R
Run time: 1:50


Who are the Boondock Saints?  Conner (Sean Patrick Flannery) and Murphy MacManus (Norman Reedus) are two Irish brothers in South Boston who have gotten it into their head that they have been chosen by God to rid their neighborhood of its criminal element.  After they take down a couple of Russian thugs who are trying to muscle in on their favorite bar, they get the attention of FBI agent Paul Smecker (Willem Dafoe), who is somewhat flamboyant, but brilliant at dissecting crime scenes.  The action and violence is completely over-the-top and Dafoe's performance, in particular, is also.  For fans of ultra-violent crime dramas a la Tarantino, this is an entertaining movie.  It is shocking and funny, although not even remotely realistic.  From people I have talked to about this movie, I've decided this is either a love it or hate it film.  There does not seem to be any in-between.  Well, in my case, I was closer to loving it, but it is not on the level of the Quentin Tarantino movies it looks to emulate.  It is certainly a fun tale of revenge and retribution that somehow manages to find a religious angle to the whole thing.

Grade: B

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