The Banshees of Inisherin is a dark tragicomedy film directed, written, and co-produced by Martin McDonagh. The film is set on a remote island off the west coast of Ireland. The film was nominated at the Golden Globes Awards and won in the categories Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, and Best Screenplay – Motion Picture. The Banshees of Inisherin is also nominated at the Academy Awards which will be celebrated on March 13, 2023.
At the end of the Irish Civil War in 1923, on the fictional Irish island of Inisherin, folk musician Colm Doherty suddenly begins ignoring his lifelong friend and drinking buddy, Pádraic Súilleabháin. Pádraic, nice and beloved by the islanders, was too “boring” for Colm, who wanted to spend the rest of his life making music and doing something that would make him remembered. Pádraic’s life has been destabilized by the loss of one of his few friends. Padraic grew increasingly frustrated with the rejection, and Colm became more resilient to his old friend’s attempts to talk to him. Colm finally gave Pádraic an ultimatum: Every time Pádraic bothered him or tried to talk to him, Colm would cut off a finger of his left hand with sheep shears.
The film’s cast is formed by
- Colin Farrell as Pádraic Súilleabháin
- Brendan Gleeson as Colm Doherty
- Kerry Condon as Siobhán Súilleabháin
- Barry Keoghan as Dominic Kearney
- Gary Lydon as Garda Peadar Kearney
- Pat Shortt as Jonjo Devine
- Sheila Flitton as Mrs. McCormick
- Bríd Ní Neachtain as Mrs. O’Riordan
- Jon Kenny as Gerry
- Aaron Monaghan as Declan
The Banshees of Inisherin has a 97% out of 100% on the web aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, based on 315 reviews, the site’s consensus says “Featuring some of Martin McDonagh’s finest work and a pair of outstanding lead performances, The Banshees of Inisherin is a finely crafted feel-bad treat”. Meanwhile, on IMDb, the film has a 7.8 out of 10, and on Metacritic has 82 out of 100, indicating Universal acclaim, based on 62 critics.
The film is currently nominated at the Academy Awards with a total of nine nominations, some of which are Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Director, among others.
Andrea Rich
