The Guard (2011 film)

Sergeant Gerry Boyle is an officer of the Garda Síochána in Connemara in the west of Ireland. He is crass and confrontational, regularly indulging in drugs and alcohol even while on duty. He is also shown to have a softer side, showing concern for his ailing mother, Eileen.

Boyle and his new subordinate, Aidan McBride, investigate a murder, with evidence apparently pointing to an occult serial killer. Shortly after, Boyle attends a briefing by FBI agent Wendell Everett, sent to liaise with the Garda in hunting down four Irish drug traffickers, led by Francis Sheehy-Skeffington, who is believed to be awaiting a delivery of cocaine. Boyle recognises one of the men in Everett's presentation as the victim of the murder he and McBride had been investigating. McBride pulls over a car driven by Sheehy and his lieutenants Clive Cornell and Liam O'Leary and is shot dead. McBride's wife, Gabriela, reports McBride's disappearance to Boyle, who promises to look into it.

The strait-laced Everett and the unorthodox Boyle are teamed up to track down Sheehy and his men but, while Everett makes the rounds, encountering language difficulties and uncooperative residents, Boyle has a sexual encounter with a pair of prostitutes at a hotel in town. On his way back from the hotel, Boyle spots McBride's Garda car at a "suicide hotspot" along the coast, but does not believe that McBride killed himself. Gabriela, an immigrant from Croatia, reveals that McBride is gay, and that she married him to obtain an Irish visa as well as to make McBride "look respectable".[7][8] Meeting Everett at a local bar, Boyle notices a CCTV camera and remembers that the original suspect in the murder case claimed to be frequenting the very same establishment at the time of the killing. Looking over the footage from the time of the murder, they see that the suspect's alibi is valid–and Everett also spots Sheehy and Cornell at the bar at the same time. Meanwhile, Cornell delivers a payoff to the Garda inspectors to keep them off the case, but Sheehy believes that Boyle will not be so easily swayed, after he meets with Boyle to half-heartedly attempt blackmail and then to offer a bribe, which is refused.

Tipped off by a young boy named Eugene, Boyle discovers a cache of weapons hidden in the marshes by the IRA and arranges its return to an IRA member. Shortly after having her last wish to hear a live pub band fulfilled, Boyle's mother commits suicide by overdosing on pills. Meeting at the bar again, Everett tells Boyle that Garda sources indicate Sheehy's shipment will be coming into County Cork and that he is leaving to investigate. Returning home, Boyle is confronted in his living room by O'Leary. Boyle pulls a gun and kills O'Leary, then calls Everett to tell him that the Cork lead is a decoy arranged by corrupt officers. Boyle drives to the local dock where Sheehy's vessel is berthed and Sheehy's men are unloading the cocaine. Everett arrives and is persuaded to give Boyle covering fire as he moves to arrest Sheehy and Cornell. Boyle kills Cornell before leaping onto the boat to deal with Sheehy. Everett's gunfire sets the boat alight. Boyle shoots Sheehy and leaves him for dead in the main cabin as the boat explodes.

The next day, Everett looks out on the water where the boat sank, believing Boyle to be dead. Eugene, standing nearby, mentions that Boyle was a good swimmer, having claimed to have been placed fourth at the 1988 Summer Olympics, a claim that Everett had dismissed. A young photographer comments that it would be easy enough to look up. Everett remembers Boyle's remark that Sheehy's backers would not forget Boyle's actions, and that Boyle would have to disappear.

The review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 94% approval rating with an average rating of 7.65/10 based on 134 reviews. The website's consensus reads, "A violent, crackerjack comedy with a strong Irish flavor and an eminently likable Brendan Gleeson in the main role."[11] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 78 out of 100, based on reviews from 29 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[12]

In The Hollywood Reporter, Todd McCarthy wrote: "Scabrous, profane, violent, verbally adroit and very often hilarious, this twisted and exceptionally accomplished variation on the buddy-cop format is capped by a protean performance by Brendan Gleeson a defiantly iconoclastic West of Ireland policeman."[13] Vanity Fair's John Lopez wrote: "So far, The Guard has been the most thoroughly enjoyable film experience at Sundance, a nice change of pace from the anomie, alienated angst and melancholy of other films."[14] In Screen International, David D'Arcy wrote: "As a director, McDonagh avoids the grand gesture and focuses on his web of odd characters that call to mind the comedies of Preston Sturges."[15] Justin Chang of Variety wrote: "The film making crackles with energy, from Chris Gill's crisp editing and Calexico's ever-inventive score to d.p. Larry Smith's dynamic camerawork, alternating between bright, almost candy-coloured interiors and shots of Galway's grey, rugged landscape."[16]

In The Times, Wendy Ide wrote: "Without doubt the strongest debut film of the year so far, this sly, witty and provocative Irish black comedy is an exceptionally funny crowd-pleaser and a playful cine-literate exercise, laced with arcane movie references... Gleeson must be thanking whatever guardian angel oversees his career for the brothers McDonagh giving him two of his meatiest roles yet."[17] Georgie Hobbs of Little White Lies wrote: "Unexpectedly hilarious, The Guard is the triumphant directorial debut of Ned Kelly screenwriter (and brother of In Bruges director Martin), John Michael McDonagh... This confident film knows full well how funny it is, daring to provoke with unfettered 'unPCness' a-plenty."[18]

• Official Website
• The Guard at Box Office Mojo
• The Guard at IMDb
• The Guard at Rotten Tomatoes