The Butcher Boy (1998)

Undescribable Perfection

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Blistering performances.

Neil Jordan directed one of the most twisted -- and cleverest -- movies in "The Butcher Boy". It focuses on a disturbed boy (Eamonn Owens) in an Irish village in the early '60s. A combination of his broken home and the threat of nuclear war push the little guy into complete insanity. Seriously, you aren't prepared for some of what this tyke does! Of course, the audience understands that the kid is merely a product of his environment, and so his actions -- no matter how jaw-dropping -- aren't really his fault. But the movie never moralizes. Jordan lets the movie be all that it can be, and the result is amazing. Watching the movie, I got the feeling that they had a lot of fun making it, with the understanding that it's got a pretty serious subject matter.Anyway, definitely worth your time. Also starring Stephen Rea, Fiona Shaw (Petunia Dursley in the Harry Potter movies), Aisling O'Sullivan, Seán McGinley, Ian Hart (Prof. Quirrell in "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone"), Brendan Gleeson (Mad-eye Moody in the Harry Potter movies), Milo O'Shea (Friar Laurence in Franco Zefferelli's "Romeo and Juliet"), and Sinéad O'Connor.

This is a terrific film from Neil Jordan: paving the way for some of his later, more famous works - but to my mind, this is his best film. Once you get past the quirk of casting Sinead O'Connor as Our Lady (a performance of great respect and ability, it turns out...) and get into the film, it's clear from an early stage that you are watching something pretty special. The acting is first rate throughout. The plaudits awarded to Eamonn Owens as Francie Brady are entirely deserved - it is a REMARKABLE performance, devoid of any guile or staginess, full of the intensity and sadness of childhood. He is supported by acting greats Stephen Rea and Fiona Shaw as his father, and nemesis respectively, and there isn't a bum note in the whole thing. It is an imaginative and almost unbearably sad film (and as only sad films can be it is also remarkably funny) that deserves to enjoy huge success and CERTAINLY deserves a DVD release, which at time of writing, was already long overdue.

I'd be lying if I claimed that the original reason I saw this wasn't anything as simple and basic as curiosity... the plot simply sounds so bizarre that one can't help but wonder about the movie itself. The movie is a wonderful mix of surrealism, drama and black comedy. As another reviewer points out, the accents may make the dialog a little hard to make out... I was fortunate enough to have subtitles(as any Dane will tell you, we get subtitles on everything that is presented to us on a screen), but I think most anyone who has a good enough grasp on the English language(and a good ear wouldn't hurt) will be able to understand, at the very least, enough of it to follow what's going on. The film is quite disturbing... it's told by a psychotic, and everything is seen from his point of view, making the line between truth and fantasy blur. The narrative is impressive, underplaying some scenes to great effect. The plot is interesting. The pacing is a tad uneven... while most of the film moves as it should, not too fast nor too slow, there are parts where it seems to come to a complete halt. Luckily, these parts are few and far between. The characters are well-written and credible. They are also all competently portrayed. The acting... wow. What can I say? Eamonn Owens is nothing short of an artist. As you watch the film(which I hope you will), observe his eyes... look into them, as he looks around menacingly, and tell me that you don't feel fear. Pure fear. One is reminded of Donald Pleasence's marvelous monologue about Michael Myers' eyes(in Halloween, for the uninitiated). That stare... if I ever met Owens in real life, I doubt I'd dare look him in the eye. Even more impressively, this was his debut performance. I'll have to watch more of his movies, to see if he can pull off other roles as well, but he certainly nailed this one. Stephen Rea was great... I've seen him in nothing else, but I could recognize his face from the trailers for V for Vendetta, a movie I'm looking forward to(even more now that I know he will grace the film with what is sure to be just as astounding a performance as he gave here), even though I'm sure it won't live up to Alan Moore's graphic novel. Sinéad O'Connor was a blast(and seemed to be having one, as well) as Our Lady. I haven't been able to find out who portrayed the main character as an adult, but let me tell you, his voice acting is grand. The narration definitely adds to the film, both in use and in acting. The writing is great. The whole film is highly entertaining and very poignant. This should be seen by just about anyone who can live with(and more importantly, understand) the language and take the disturbing nature of the film. I recommend this to anyone who is afraid of neither accents nor the disturbing images contained herein. Very funny and quite unsettling. 8/10

I tried to watch this movie on video, and could understand only about half of the dialog, which for the most part is spoken at a fast pace in thick Irish accents.However, it has been praised by many people, and I can accept that it is an excellent film. The setting is convincing, the acting is certainly good, especially that of the young actor in the title role, and one can always rely on Stehen Rea and Fiona Shaw, who like a true professional, manages to speak her lines so that the words come out clearly, yet without sacrificing the Irish brogue.I would advise anyone wanting to see it to hire it on DVD, with English subtitles.