Following its world premiere at the 79th Venice International Film Festival in September of 2022, fans and critics immediately took notice of The Banshees of Inisherin, a dark tragicomedy directed, written and co-produced by Martin McDonagh.
Last night’s Golden Globes, where the production won three major prizes (best comedy or musical film, best screenplay and best comedy actor), solidified the movie’s success, convincing everyone who hasn’t yet watched it to find a way to do so ahead of the 2023 Oscars in March, where the film is expected to garner attention as well.
WHAT IS THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN ABOUT?
The Banshees of Inisherin is set on a fictional remote island off the west coast of Ireland at the end of the Irish Civil War in 1923 and it chronicles the relationship between two friends, folk musician Colm Doherty (Brenda Gleeson) and Pádraic Súilleabháin (Colin Farrell).
As the movie kicks off, Colm decides to abruptly end his friendship with Pádraic, thinking him too "dull" to spend time with and hoping to use the rest of his life to accomplish tasks and compose music he'll actually be remembered for.
Of course, Pádraic doesn't take lightly to the change and tries his best to reconnect with his friend, even asking his sister Siobhán (Kerry Condon) and a troubled local boy named Dominic Kearney (Barry Keoghan) for help.
Eventually, though, Colm gives Pádraic a pretty scary ultimatum, telling him that, every time Pádraic will try to speak with him, he will cut off one of his own left fingers using a pair of sheep shears.
The movie, at times funny and at others clearly delivering a sort of deeper, more thoughtful message that stays with you long after its conclusion, is a continuous exploration of the power of friendship and love.
WHO STARS IN THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN?
The Banshees of Inisherin stars 46-year-old actor Colin Farrell as the heartbroken Pádraic Súilleabháin opposite 67-year-old Brendan Gleeson as Colm Doherty. Both actors put on stellar performances that earned them Golden Globes nomination.
Although Brendan fell short in his best supporting actor in a motion picture category (the award went to Ke Huy Quan for his work on Everything Everywhere All at Once), Colin did win the award for best actor in a musical or comedy.
The movie also stars Irish actors Kerry Condon in the role of Pádraic's sister Siobhán Súilleabháin and Barry Keoghan as Dominic Kearney, a troubled local island boy who tries his best to mend the friendship between the two main characters.
The cast is rounded out by a slew of other Irish personalities, including Gary Lyndon as Garda Peadar Kearney (he was born in London but eventually moved to Ireland), Pat Short as Jonjo Devine, Bríd Ní Neachtain as Mrs. O'Riordan and comedian Jon Kenny as Gerry.
HOW TO WATCH THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN
There are a few ways to watch The Banshees of Inisherin. The nearly two-hour-long movie is now available for streaming on HBO Max so anyone with a subscription will have access to it.
Folks who don't have a subscription can also opt to rent the film on Apple TV, Prime Video or YouTube Movies.
HBO Max is currently not available for viewers in the UK so you may need to use a VPN in order to stream the film from that location. VPNs are a popular way to access TV shows only available in other countries, and many are easy to get.
If you're already confused, don't panic - we've got you covered. Our sister site, TechRadar, has put every major VPN service to the test to save you the hassle of sifting through the web yourself. They've rated ExpressVPN as the best - and here's why.
In their words, "It’s compatible with all of your devices, supports most streaming services, and ranks among the fastest. You can even install it on devices like an Amazon Fire TV Stick, Apple TV, Xbox, and PlayStation. So for a one-stop-shop, you can’t go wrong with Express."
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