The Guard 2011 Movie Review

John Michael McDonagh's first feature film "The Guard," is an action comedy about an Irish police sergeant who teams up with the F.B.I. to take down a big time illegal drug trafficker. The sergeant is played by Irish native, Brendan Gleeson (In Bruges and Harry Potter)  the head federal agent on the case being played by Don Cheadle (Crash and Hotel Rwanda). Gleeson's character is very unusual in that his police tactics are zany at times and often illegal. With that in mind the character still seems to feel strongly when he believes something wrong is occurring or an injustice has happened. That is why this doesn't have the feel of a standard crooked police officer show like "The Shield" or "Training Day," he just comes across as weird and not shady. Cheadle's character is a classic straight laced by the book agent who doesn't vary his methods based on the situation.

It's hard to watch this film and not compare it to McDonagh's brother's directorial debut, "In Bruges". In Bruges has the same dark tones, gritty writing style, Irish dialect, and Brendan Gleeson in a major role. "The Guard" does have a mildly less dark overall feel and what seems to be a lower budget. That being said, I would rather watch a film that is reminiscent of "In Bruges" then almost any other kind of film.

At times the accents are a bit difficult to understand and the final showdown is a lot of fun to watch yet a bit abrupt. Other than these minor nit-picky complaints "The guard" is a gritty yet enjoyable time and an overall good spirited dark action dramedy. It's a small film with a big heart, cliche I know, but fitting  in the case of "The Guard." It's the perfect rental or Netflix movie night.

Rating: 7.8/10.