It's a little rough around the edges, but cult pic 'The Boondock Saints' remains offbeat, rousing entertainment with Fox now gracing the masses with a Director's Cut Blu-ray where we can appreciate the nuances of Willem Dafoe's borderline insane performance in the glory of high-def.
The film is as known for its behind-the-scenes carnage as its on-screen carnage with the making-of for this pic being widely scrutinized in the 2003 documentary 'Overnight' where L.A. bartender Troy Duffy got his script bought by the Weinsteins and rewarded with a fifteen million budget and a chance to direct. Proving to be extremely difficult, Duffy got himself exiled from the studio where he still managed to raise the money to finance the film he wanted to make.
A case of stubbornness or artistic integrity? Regardless, the pic went on to get only a limited theatrical release but managed to get a 'Blockbuster Exclusive' video run where it became a cult hit.
Duffy hasn't made a film since but he has managed to slowly get back into the studio elite with a sequel 'All Saint's Day' now in post-production at Sony. If you can manage to set aside this behind-the-scenes drama, you'll find a competently made hipster crime pic with plot clearly taking a backseat to visual and thesping flair.
The main thrust of the story is really quite good with a tone that veers from wacky to heavy-handed with a fairly deft hand. The plot follows two Catholic Irish brothers, Connor and Murphy McManus (Sean Patrick Flanery and Norman Reedus) who live out a meager existence in the boondocks of Boston with a surprising zeal.
Working at a meat-packing plant and heading to their ghetto apartment where they sleep on mattresses a few feet apart and apparently drink and smoke a lot around an unassuming table, the life of the brothers start proper when they become engaged in a barfight.
On St. Patty's day of all days, the Russian mafia shows up to the bro's favorite bar to kick everybody out. This, of course, can not stand and a bar fight leads to them having to off some Russian gangsters in self-defense. Realizing they have a taste for killing 'evil' men, they use their faith as fuel to become vigilantes, sort of Irish Robin Hoods that kill instead of steal.
Falling in with the two is goofy small-time Italian hood Roc (David Della Rocco) who's also had enough with the seedy underbelly of Boston that he has unwittingly become a part of.
It would be nice if scum could be wiped off the Earth with no consequences but these murders, of course, attract the attention of the mob who hire infamous assassin 'The Duke' (Billy Connolly) to track them and the authorities headed up by the self-hating homosexual Paul Smecker (Willem Dafoe) who meticulously, and with a flair for the dramatic, recreates the crimes.
All these threads eventually intertwine in some unexpected ways with both Smecker and Duke proving to develop different motivations. Now ten years-old, the film is unmistakably a bit dated with the post-modern crime frills influence of Tarantino and Ritchie both clearly on display here with extreme violence and manipulating chronology. But derogatory comparisons, mentioned in almost all negative reviews of the pic at the time of its theatrical release, are unfair.
Sure, there's some influence here but Duffy seems to be more interested in tonal extremes that not even Tarantino or Ritchie would try to approach. By the time Dafoe's FBI agent, dressed in horrendous drag, shows up at the Italian mafia compound (and gets invited in!), you'll either deem the movie a great time or dismiss it out right. Performances find Dafoe approaching the role with a charismatic, comedic zest while Flanery and Reedus give the characters a straight eye-on-the-prize momentum.
We get a 1080p AVC 2.35:1 high-def encode with the film getting both theatrical and extended cuts. It's a decent effort considering the low-budget source material but there's a bit more print damage than normal for a pic of its age.
Still, it's head-and-shoulders over the non-anamorphic first DVD release of 'Boondock Saints' so if you're still slumming with that version, this is a clear step up (if not a huge leap over the Director's Cut DVD). A DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is provided and does a great job handling the constant shooting, songs and somewhat obnoxious score.
Despite the huge oversight of not including doc 'Overnight' on here which would up the value of the package considerably, there's a few extras here carried over from the previous SE DVD.
A couple commentaries start us off, the first with Duffy and the second with Billy Connolly - both are worth a listen for fans with Duffy living up to his egotistical reputation. There is 17 minutes of Deleted Scenes, the complete script viewable on the disc or printable and a theatrical trailer to finish things off.
Ultimately, the pic's legacy is right on with a cult status that paints it as a picture more deserving than being unknown but not quite good enough to be regarded as a classic. For me, it's the sheer enthusiasm of the cast and director that won me over despite the notably style over substance sensibilities. High-def video and features are decent but the audio is pounding. An easy recommend for fans and newcomers alike.
The Boondock Saints [Blu-ray] is now available at Amazon . Visit the DVD database for more information.
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