The Boondock Saints is the best action movie I’ve seen in a long time. It has the “shoot em up, bang em up” theme that all action films should have, with moral undertones and a bit of comedy thrown in. Modern action movies run with a war theme, which constitutes gore because of the very nature of the topic, or senseless gore like Kill Bill. This movie demonstrates neither. (??) The action scenes are very realistic and explained in great detail. The star power of the actor does not guarantee a good picture. It is an actor’s ability to bring the characters to a believable reality that can make a great movie. This movie has a very talented cast that embodied the characters with outstanding believability.
The main characters, twins Connor and Murphy Mcmanus are out to rid Boston of evil criminals. They feel that this was a mission given to them by God. This revelation was made after stopping the Russian mob from bullying their friend Doc at his local bar. The two guys load up on ammo and weapons and start out on their pursuit of the bad guys. As they start knocking off Boston’s big time criminals the police call in Detective Paul Smecker, played by Willem Defoe, to solve the mystery. No one knew who was doing it or how many people were involved, but they were glad to see gangsters and criminals off the streets and dead. The Mcmanus twins were only targeting evil people. This made Dectective Smeckers job even harder. He was torn between catching the two men or letting them kill the criminals. He explains his predicament while drunk at a bar, “I put evil men behind bars, but the law has miles of red tape and loopholes for these cocksuckers to slip through.” He admits that the boys are doing exactly what he wishes he could do. This point is what makes this movie so appealing to so many people. You see people go out and kill bad guys and get away with it.
This movie really makes you think, are these guys doing what is right? By murdering the criminals they are becoming murderers themselves, but “in the name of God.” They are totally oblivious to the irony of killing killers and soon the audience is on the same page. Il Duce, the boys father, explains their mission, “And whosoever shed man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed, for in the image of God made He man.” The director and writer make you want to side with the twins by making the killings righteous. The rituals the brothers demonstrate after the killings showcase their belief in what their doing is for the glory of God. The director threw clips of reporters asking citizens what they thought of the masked vigilantes. People were praising their acts saying it made Boston a better place. This is what many viewers walked away feeling. I always hate when the good guys in movies decide to be merciful and let the bad guy simply go to jail. The good guys in this movie don’t have sympathy for the scum they go after. Their duty is to wipe “sinners” off the face of the earth.
The background music makes the action scenes even more dramatic. Music plays a very important role in many of the scenes. The director puts the action scenes in slow motion with opera music accompanying it. Firefights are always a lot more dramatic and interesting when they are played in slow motion. You get more emotional reactions from the characters. After one of the gunfights they go back to their apartment to tend their wounds. This is another slow motion scene with dramatic orchestra music. They cauterize the cuts with a hot iron. You can feel their pain just by looking at their faces. They reenact one of the last fire fights while Detective Smeckerly acts it out after it happens. The way this was done was really creative. The Detective was in the scene with the boys following them, doing what they did. It was a flashback, but he was in it. He then went outside where the shooting continued. This is where the scene climaxed. He exclaimed, “There was a firefight!” At this point he’s back in the street with the rest of the cops. He had acted out exactly what had happened a few hours before.
Not only does this movie provide action and entertainment, it also leaves you with a lot of questions. It quenches your thirst but leaves you desiring more. The movie ends with the two boys being reunited with their father. Will they set out to fulfill the same mission together as a family? Will they be caught? If there is a sequel, I am sure it will be just as good as the first. This movie makes you think about what is right and wrong. Is it wrong to kill no matter who it is? Is it right to stop crime by all means necessary? The Mcmanus brothers decided to take things into their own hands and, on a mission from God, punish the sinners. Il Duce proclaims, “When I raise my flashing sword, and my hand takes hold on judgment, I will take vengeance upon mine enemies, and I will repay those who haze me. Oh, Lord, raise me to Thy right hand and count me among Thy saints.”