If there’s one movie that captures the wild energy of Celtic punk music, it’s The Boondock Saints, a movie that from the opening titles is absolutely electric. Crowds in 1999 weren’t too keen on it during its initial release but it’s easy to see why this movie has become a cult favorite in the years since. The McManus twins are somewhat enigmatic from the start, a little bit reminiscent of the Salamanca twins in Breaking Bad, only 13 years earlier.
But then the more we’re shown, the more there is to this odd little movie. Their violent pursuit of justice and some kind of religious truth to their work is incredibly compelling, as are some of the action set-pieces utilizing some rare slow motion that’s used to great effect. Then there’s the Willem Dafoe character, who is all over the map, in a good way. As the man hunting down the brothers, his conflicted response to understanding their mission corresponds with our own, and with the various interviewees at the end of the film. The main feature of this movie is that it pops, jumping off the screen with life. That’s how it plays for me, anyway. It seems like the perfect summation of a day that honors Irish-American spirit.
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