Review - The Boondock Saints (1999)
Hey guys, Chuck here. Hope everyone is enjoying St. Patrick's Day, because I've got quite the review for you guys today. However, before we get into that, a quick bit of housekeeping. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic across the globe, many movies that I had planned to review for you guys have been postponed for later releases. This includes films like A Quiet Place Part II, Mulan, Black Widow, and No Time to Die. So, for the time being, all reviews on my blog will be off-the-shelf reviews. Any films that I have available to watch in my home, whether on DVD, VHS, Blu-Ray, or on streaming services like Netflix and Disney+ will be my main focus for now. This will include this week's Throwback Thursday review of Blade Runner, and possibly my review of the live-action remake of Disney's Lady and the Tramp on Disney+. Now, with that out of the way, let's get into today's review of The Boondock Saints.
Released in 1999, this super violent crime thriller is written and directed by Troy Duffy, and features a cast that includes Willem Dafoe, Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus, David Della Rocco, and Billy Connolly. The movie focuses on two Irish brothers named Connor and Murphy McManus, played by Flanery and Reedus respectively, who after a night at their local Irish Pub that ends with them and other patrons in a fight with Russian mobsters, end up attacked by the Russians the next morning, killing the mobsters in self defense. The deaths of the mobsters, while being investigated by the Boston PD, attract the attention of FBI agent Paul Smecker, played by Willem Dafoe. Smecker, after speaking with the brothers, decides not to charge them with a felony, as the deaths of the Russians was an act of self defense. That night, while spending the night in a jail cell to avoid the press, Connor and Murphy have an epiphany: kill those who do evil, so the god and innocent may flourish. The two get a page on the pager of one of the dead Russians, which leads them to a meeting with a number of higher ups in the Russian mob.
Meanwhile, the brothers' good friend Rocco, short for David Della Rocco (played by, well, David Della Rocco), is having a meeting with his boss: Italian Mafia boss Papa Joe Yakavetta, played by Carlo Rota. Rocco is assigned with taking out the Russian mob leaders at the meeting, but gets there shortly after the brothers take out all of the Russians. Rocco later joins the brothers, pointing them to various targets that he knows due to his time with the Yakavetta's, including Papa Joe's number two guy Vincenzo, played by Ron Jeremy. Due to Rocco and the brothers' actions, Papa Joe calls on the services of infamous hit man Il Duce, played by Billy Connolly, who in a display of pure awesomeness attacks the three outside of a home of a hit man that Rocco and the brothers just eliminated. While all of this has been going on, Smecker and the Boston PD have been investigating all of the crime scenes where the brothers, and Rocco, had hit. Smecker, after some contemplation, decides to help the brothers in their cause, as opposed to arresting them. Sadly, after being caught by Papa Joe's men, Rocco is killed. Smecker and Il Duce arrive, and after knocking Smecker out, Il Duce walks n on the brothers mourning the death of Rocco, and reciting the McManus family prayer, which Il Duce finishes, revealing himself to be their father: Noah McManus.
Some time later, Noah and the brothers, with aid from Smecker and Boston PD detectives Dolly Duffy, and Greenly (who are the three main cops in the movie), arrive at a court trial for Papa Joe, and in a courtroom full of witnesses, kills him for good. The movie ends with an end credits sequence of man-on-the-street interviews with people in Boston, as if the events of the movie actually happened.
The Boondock Saints is one of those movies that I had heard about, but didn't get around to watching until much later. After watching it for the first time on Netflix, I was instantly hooked, and I later picked up the film, along with its sequel, on DVD, and later on Blu-Ray. While many think of Norman Reedus as Daryl from The Walking Dead, I personally enjoyed his performance here much more. Also, I have met both Sean Patrick Flanery and David Della Rocco at a fan convention in 2018, which was an awesome experience. The story of this movie, while not for everyone, was a lot of fun to watch play out. I also like that they didn't try to make the brothers superhuman, going for a more "ordinary Joes in an extraordinary circumstance" type of scenario, which is cool. I also like how we see the brothers carrying out their actions after the fact, while Smecker breaks down the events one step at a time. By the way, seeing Smecker recreating the crimes is pretty cool. The three cops, Dolly, Duffy, and Greenly are all a lot of fun, and their banter with each other, and with Smecker, is a highlight of the movie for me. I also really enjoyed Billy Connolly as Noah/Il Duce, who steals the show the minute he shows up wearing a long coat and a vest with six holsters on the front. Writer/Director Troy Duffy created a definite cult masterpiece with this movie, which I have made a required viewing for myself every year on St. Patrick's Day. Therefore I'm going to give The Boondock Saints a rating of 5/5. This is Chuck signing off. See you guys next time.
Released in 1999, this super violent crime thriller is written and directed by Troy Duffy, and features a cast that includes Willem Dafoe, Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus, David Della Rocco, and Billy Connolly. The movie focuses on two Irish brothers named Connor and Murphy McManus, played by Flanery and Reedus respectively, who after a night at their local Irish Pub that ends with them and other patrons in a fight with Russian mobsters, end up attacked by the Russians the next morning, killing the mobsters in self defense. The deaths of the mobsters, while being investigated by the Boston PD, attract the attention of FBI agent Paul Smecker, played by Willem Dafoe. Smecker, after speaking with the brothers, decides not to charge them with a felony, as the deaths of the Russians was an act of self defense. That night, while spending the night in a jail cell to avoid the press, Connor and Murphy have an epiphany: kill those who do evil, so the god and innocent may flourish. The two get a page on the pager of one of the dead Russians, which leads them to a meeting with a number of higher ups in the Russian mob.
Meanwhile, the brothers' good friend Rocco, short for David Della Rocco (played by, well, David Della Rocco), is having a meeting with his boss: Italian Mafia boss Papa Joe Yakavetta, played by Carlo Rota. Rocco is assigned with taking out the Russian mob leaders at the meeting, but gets there shortly after the brothers take out all of the Russians. Rocco later joins the brothers, pointing them to various targets that he knows due to his time with the Yakavetta's, including Papa Joe's number two guy Vincenzo, played by Ron Jeremy. Due to Rocco and the brothers' actions, Papa Joe calls on the services of infamous hit man Il Duce, played by Billy Connolly, who in a display of pure awesomeness attacks the three outside of a home of a hit man that Rocco and the brothers just eliminated. While all of this has been going on, Smecker and the Boston PD have been investigating all of the crime scenes where the brothers, and Rocco, had hit. Smecker, after some contemplation, decides to help the brothers in their cause, as opposed to arresting them. Sadly, after being caught by Papa Joe's men, Rocco is killed. Smecker and Il Duce arrive, and after knocking Smecker out, Il Duce walks n on the brothers mourning the death of Rocco, and reciting the McManus family prayer, which Il Duce finishes, revealing himself to be their father: Noah McManus.
Some time later, Noah and the brothers, with aid from Smecker and Boston PD detectives Dolly Duffy, and Greenly (who are the three main cops in the movie), arrive at a court trial for Papa Joe, and in a courtroom full of witnesses, kills him for good. The movie ends with an end credits sequence of man-on-the-street interviews with people in Boston, as if the events of the movie actually happened.
The Boondock Saints is one of those movies that I had heard about, but didn't get around to watching until much later. After watching it for the first time on Netflix, I was instantly hooked, and I later picked up the film, along with its sequel, on DVD, and later on Blu-Ray. While many think of Norman Reedus as Daryl from The Walking Dead, I personally enjoyed his performance here much more. Also, I have met both Sean Patrick Flanery and David Della Rocco at a fan convention in 2018, which was an awesome experience. The story of this movie, while not for everyone, was a lot of fun to watch play out. I also like that they didn't try to make the brothers superhuman, going for a more "ordinary Joes in an extraordinary circumstance" type of scenario, which is cool. I also like how we see the brothers carrying out their actions after the fact, while Smecker breaks down the events one step at a time. By the way, seeing Smecker recreating the crimes is pretty cool. The three cops, Dolly, Duffy, and Greenly are all a lot of fun, and their banter with each other, and with Smecker, is a highlight of the movie for me. I also really enjoyed Billy Connolly as Noah/Il Duce, who steals the show the minute he shows up wearing a long coat and a vest with six holsters on the front. Writer/Director Troy Duffy created a definite cult masterpiece with this movie, which I have made a required viewing for myself every year on St. Patrick's Day. Therefore I'm going to give The Boondock Saints a rating of 5/5. This is Chuck signing off. See you guys next time.
Comments
Post a Comment