To my surprise I totally enjoyed tonight’s screening of In Bruge. I didn’t even know much about this movie going into tonight’s preview screening – just the basics of two hit men being told by their boss to go hide out in Bruge.

The hit men are played by Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, their boss Ralph Fiennes. All three deliver superb performance. I actually even came to like and admire Colin’s skills by the end of the movie – not something that I expected at all.

As Colin and Brendan bide their time in Bruge waiting for further instruction from Ralph we slowly find out why they have been told to flee England and its not a happy story. In the meantime the days are filled with the guys playing tourist and the night boozing it up … to an extent. Colin’s character hates Bruge whereas Brendan, who kind of plays a father-figure, finds his soul soothed and mind calmed by the beauty that is this medieval city.

Soon though the movie erupts into utter surrealism as they encounter a dwarf (quite possibly one of the highlights of the movie – everyone knows I have a soft-spot for the little people) filming some random Dutch movie, a romantic interest for Colin and some other odd ball characters including an arms dealer. Violence too erupts when Ralph Fiennes enters the picture. Be warned there are some gruesome scenes towards the back end of the movie.

This movie is a great mix of black comedy and emotion and, surprisingly, chemistry between the two leading men – Colin and Brendan. Although you will find yourself wondering where it is all heading, in the end you take it for the ride that it is – a fun, endearing, fresh look at life’s challenges.