B Rating by Robert W. Hammerle

If there was any lingering doubt as to how history will eventually view the best films of 2007 (or as Jon Stewart said at the Oscars, "Thank God for a comedy about teenage pregnancy"), then one only has to see Martin McDonagh's violently impish ode to wayward hit men, "In Bruges." Filmed on location in Bruges, Belgium, it verbally mocks this gorgeous medieval city while McDonagh's camera pays homage to its beauty.

Colin Farrell, in the performance of his career, plays one-half of a hit man team sent to Bruges by their boss (Ralph Fiennes) to hide out after a botched hit on a priest resulted in the accidental shooting of a five year old boy. Farrell, racked with guilt over shooting the child, views the solitude of Bruges as a living hell.

On the other hand, his partner, the accomplished Brendan Gleeson, is captivated by Bruges' scenic charm. Farrell has little interest in anything other than booze and cheap women, while Gleeson wants to spend his time sight seeing.

While they are clearly violent men, Gleeson and Farrell form a hit man odd couple team that exudes great chemistry. As Farrell becomes more racked with the guilt over his responsibility of killing a child, Gleeson becomes more fatherly and protective.

At the risk of committing a cinematic sin and giving away a central plot development, I don't think I tread in harms way by telling all of you that the movie darkens when Gleeson receives orders to kill Farrell, a friend clearly on the verge of suicide. What follows, while not entirely satisfying, is nonetheless fascinating to watch unfold.

The tone of McDonagh's fine film is very similar to the Coen brothers' masterpiece "No Country for Old Men." Violence follows our boys every waking moment, and yet they become increasingly endearing with their collective sense of bemused fatalism.

There are several excellent performances in support of our emotionally conflicted hit men, the most notable of which is given by the tremendously versatile Ralph Fiennes. While he has played leading men with some obvious success ("The English Patient" (1996); "The End of the Affair" (1999); and "The Constant Gardener" (2005)), he is at his best playing a villain. (Think of Amen Goeth in "Schindler's List" (1993); Francis Dolarhyde in "Red Dragon" (2002); the voice of Victor Quartermaine in "Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit" (2005); and his continuing role as Lord Voldemort in the "Harry Potter" movies.) In this case, he is simply marvelous as the obsessed, violent crime boss with a conscience.

In reality, this movie is a biting social satire about the loving, platonic relationship between two outlaws much like the classic "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" (1969). McDonagh's poisonous screenplay spares no one, regardless of your race, nationality or gender. But just like Butch and Sundance, Farrell and Gleeson face their destiny with a sense of whimsy that you are not likely to forget.