The Banshees Of Inisherin Showtimes Near Broadway Metro (2024)

FAQs

What is the message behind The Banshees of Inisherin? ›

The message of the film is the downfall of culture and the way loss can destroy someone. With the two leads serving as metaphors for the Irish as a nation, the message of the film can be read as a cautionary tale.

On a remote island off the coast of Ireland, Pádraic is devastated when his buddy Colm suddenly puts an end to their lifelong friendship. With help from his sister and a troubled young islander, Pádraic sets out to repair the damaged relationship by any means necessary. However, as Colm's resolve only strengthens, he soon delivers an ultimatum that leads to shocking consequences.

The Banshees of Inisherin / Film synopsis

It's a film that gives you hope for the future of film making, truly original, funny, dark, it's like no other film I can think of. Worlds away from what I've seen on the big screen for some time. You don't know whether to laugh or cry, it truly doesn't follow any of the usual rules.

"We just wanted to make one of the most beautiful Irish films we could possibly make," says Martin McDonagh, the London-Irish born writer, director and producer of the acclaimed new film, The Banshees of Inisherin.

The argument was made as part of a general critique of the film's hammed up Irishness: its seeming delivery of a barrage of stock tropes, stereotypes, and visual motifs that, from its opening scenes, screams: “Hold on to your flat caps… Here comes Ireland”.

It's a deeply cynical story with an achingly human message, a meditation on the way we define ourselves through others. One cannot pin their failures on a friend, nor can they use a peer as proof of virtue. We are our own individuals and must recognize ourselves as such.

Depression amongst men is discussed, and the film has some dark, disturbing scenes. This includes a man cutting off his fingers. A corpse is seen being lifted out of some water, and a character commits arson in an attempted murder plot.

While the answer to what are the banshees of Inisherin may remain elusive, many are curious whether the film is based on a true story. As it happens, the Golden Globe winner is a complete work of fiction. However, Martin McDonagh did draw from a lot of real-life history to craft its setting.

THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN is as close as you can get to a contemporary Shakespeare tragedy short of reviving the bard himself and teaching him how to use screenwriting software.

It is intended as an allegory for the Irish Civil War ('Inisherin' translates to 'Island Ireland'), which was in full rage at that time. Colin Farrell plays Pádraic Súilleabháin, a small farmer, and Brendan Gleeson plays Colm Doherty, a fiddle player who scores traditional Irish music.

Is The Banshees of Inisherin a metaphor? ›

COLUMN: 'The Banshees of Inisherin' is a hilariously grim metaphor for the Irish Civil War. Brendan Gleeson, left, and Colin Farrell in "The Banshees of Inisherin."

Plot. In the spring of 1923, near the end of the Irish Civil War, on the fictional isle of Inisherin (literally "the island of Ireland"), fiddler Colm Doherty abruptly begins ignoring his lifelong best friend and drinking buddy Pádraic Súilleabháin.

The name translates roughly to “Ireland Island,” or “Island of Ireland,” and it appears to be the quintessential bucolic island community situated somewhere off of Western Ireland's wild Atlantic coast; it's an island that seems almost too rugged, too beautiful to be real.

The Banshees of Inisherin is a beautifully-shot and deftly-played comedy. It is at once masterful, surprisingly poignant, and profound. Its portrait of a friendship faltering ultimately proves how vital friendship actually is: how vulnerable and naked we are without it.

If you don't mind a slow, sad story, The Banshees of Inisherin is worth watching thanks to gorgeous scenery and some terrific acting.

COLUMN: 'The Banshees of Inisherin' is a hilariously grim metaphor for the Irish Civil War.

If Colm represents the Free State and Pádraig the (original) IRA, then my theory is that Colm's fingers represent Northern Ireland. One of the terms of the treaty was to give up the North.

The old lady which Padraic avoids like the plague, serves as the bridge between the surface and deep levels of the film, the bridge of the allegory. She represents the literal banshee. In Irish folklore, a banshee is a female spirit who heralds the death of a family member, usually by screaming, wailing, or shrieking.

Martin McDonagh's 'The Banshees of Inisherin' explores themes of friendship, betrayal and redemption during the Irish Civil War.