Review of Seven Psychopaths (2012) by Joanna B — 31 May 2016

Directing his second feature film, Tony /Oscar winning writer Martin McDonagh takes a clever tongue-in-cheek self-reverential autobiographical approach to Hollywood's inherent foibles in the convoluted yet compellingly constructed caper film, Seven Psychopaths.

A curious movie whose subject could be about any writer trapped at the beginning the creative process, one layer invades another as the imagination process goes into overtime and for the first time in a long time a screenplay is genuinely enticing on its own merit.

Suffering from an extreme case of writers block, alcoholic Irish screenwriter Marty Faranan (Colin Farrell) has only a title for his next script, Seven Psychopaths, but nothing else.

Eager to assist by any means necessary, Marty's part-time actor best friend Billy (Sam Rockwell) places a classified ad calling on former psychopaths volunteer for interview. Disconcertingly one man petting a rabbit shows up (Tom Waits) claiming to be a specialist serial killer of serial killers.

Sparking unusual visions of killers; from an Amish to a Buddist, Marty starts to concoct six more psychopaths to round out his book. But stimulus may be closer than Marty first thought as self-justifying scammer Billy and his bizarre business partner, Hans (Christopher Walken) also qualify.

Snatching the beloved pets of well-off citizens and returning them for reward, the duo pick the wrong victim dog-napping Bonny the Shih Tzu. Belonging to the emotionally inept Charlie (Woody Harrelson), Bonny is the sole living creature that inspires affection from the cold-blooded gangster, exclaimed by her tag that read "Return to Charles Castello or you will f-ing die.".

Enraged, Charlie sends out his minons to reclaim Bonny and as crazy mounts, Marty receives more material than he could ever use and now just needs to live to tell the tale.

A cacophony of distorted sub-plots, Seven Psychopaths eloquently states from the get-go its intentions to be as out-there as possible as a brain-teasing talky exploring a writer's inner battle to solve a cinematic jigsaw with 'layers'.

McDonagh assembled a killer cast. Having worked on the broadway production of 'A Behanding in Spokane' with the enigmatic Rockwell and the eccentric Walken, McDonagh adds to the Tarinton-esque mix, bad boy Farrell and the weirdo worthy Harrelson. The actor's delightfully natural chemistry and intense interactions is a work of art in itself.

The Verdict: Vivaciously nonsensical, overtly violent and stunningly acted, I am not sure that the sum of this fiercely non-PC comedy adds up to a grand total of amazing but it will eventually gain cult patina. Sometimes you have to leave your analytical mind and surrender to cinema, at least for once it is on a piece with brains - even if there are a few screws lose.

Published: The Queanbeyan Age.

Date of Publication: 16/11/2012.