An island haunted by ancient witches and loneliness is the backdrop for Martin McDonagh’s sublime, unforgettable film. As bombs explode on the Irish mainland, the residents of Inisherin go about their ordinary lives living in the relative safety of isolation. There aren’t enough young women on the island for all of the men. There aren’t enough opportunities in 1923 for anyone who seeks something better. The only hope for most of them is to leave. Or else the island threatens to take them under in one way or another.
The Banshees of Inisherin is set on a misty island so remote, it might as well be perched on the edge of the world. The location is forbidding in the best of times, and with civil war raging across the choppy channel, these times are anything but good. The film, like the island, is sparsely populated. There’s good-natured, warm-hearted Pádraic (Colin Farrell), his irascible lifelong friend Colm (Brendan Gleeson), his restless and long-suffering sister Siobhán (Kerry Condon), and Dominic (Barry Keoghan) the young man who clings close to his three older friends because, frankly, there’s nobody else within 100 miles for him to cling to.
For all their close proximity, these four personalities are as different as four points of a compass. The blunt circumstances of their birth have forced them to coexist in mutual dependency, despite the rippling undercurrent of discontent that has begun to escalate into frustration, distrust and downright hostility towards one another. As the film progresses, the characters’ relationships become more complex as secrets are revealed and allegiances shift. The confined setting of the village is heightened to claustrophobic annoyance whenever they congregate indoors.
Inevitably and not surprisingly, the tension between the characters will ultimately lead to a violent confrontation. More shocking is how the eruption of violence seems to violate the usual rules of drama, since the self-destructive behavior offers no solace to the characters, and gives no catharsis to the audience. That’s no accident. It’s the trademark McDonagh’s existential philosophy that leaves our heads filled with questions. We find in his films, just like we discover about life, the concept of easy answers is a myth.
The ensemble in The Banshees of Inisherin features a cast about as small as a cast can get and still provide opportunities for the players to speak to each other at all. Easy to see how anyone’s refusal to speak would create instant animosity. It’s not hard to imagine how such delicate dynamics would be thrown into confusion if any of the participants decided he was fed up with participating.
The characters’ relationships with each other are a key element of the film. Their overlapping interactions and emotional dynamics drive the plot forward, and on an island this tiny it’s not possible to drive anything very far before someone is bound to hit the edge of a cliff.
A key aspect of small ensemble drama, whether it be on stage or screen, is the level of trust and camaraderie that has to exist among the actors. With a cast of only four main characters, we get a visceral feel for the intense sense of closeness and familiarity among this mismatched quartet, which leads to a deeper understanding and connection in their performances. This trust that McDonagh fosters in each of his films allows for a unique level of vulnerability and authenticity onscreen that would be difficult or impossible to achieve with larger ensembles.
Another important aspect of a small ensemble collaboration is the level of responsibility each actor holds. In a compact ensemble, each actor is vital to the overall performance, and their individual arcs create multiple dramatic waves for the audience to ride.. This naturally puts a great deal of pressure on individual actors, but the cast of The Banshees of Inisherin is up to the task. No matter how uplifting or heartbreaking each scene may be, we feel a heightened sense of ownership and pride in each individual performance.
The goal of any tightly knit ensemble cast is that their supportive but competitive interplay will add layers of complexity and raw emotion to a film, especially when set in a remote location where the characters are isolated from the rest of the world. The Banshees of Inisherin is one of the finest examples of this circumstance in recent memory, as the confined setting and diverse cast of characters come together to create a thrilling and memorable film.
These dynamics play a crucial role in the success of The Banshees of Inisherin, greatly influence the way the story sticks in the heads of the audience long after the final devastating scenes.
McDonagh’s background in theater is evident in the perfect harmony between writing and ensemble acting. They all get it because it’s written for them. It’s written in perfect rhythm for actors to speak out loud. That is what makes this movie so great – there is not a weak link to be found anywhere.
The writing is so meticulous, so brilliant, so full of observations about human nature, all tucked away inside what seems like a simple story about simple people. But there is nothing simple about this script. It’s about big ideas, like what drives us to war and to hatred.
It’s about what happens when those who are gifted with precious things, like the ability to make art, want or need to shut others out of the experience. Colm can hear the music he hopes will one day make him famous. He needs complete silence to hear the music in his head but with Pádraic talking to him all of the time he can’t concentrate and he becomes frustrated. He figures Pádraic will keep him from hearing music — if he cuts off his fingers he will lose the urge to play and maybe then he can be friends with him again.
It is a conundrum you only really get if you know what it feels like to be Colm, and you know how precious your quiet, alone time is. It’s easy to stand in judgment of him and think he’s being petty and mean. But for some, that peace and quiet is the most essential thing to our existence.
As every screenwriter knows, the genial chemistry in a tightly knit ensemble cast can greatly enhance a film’s emotional impact, especially if the action takes place on a remote island off the coast of Ireland in an era when even a simple telephone call was unavailable to the isolated inhabitants. When characters are cut off from the rest of society, naturally their relationships with each other become even more crucial as they rely on each other for support and companionship. It’s a delicate situation that can seem idyllic when all goes well, but threaten to quickly become tense and fraught with conflict if these amicable relationships were ever to come unraveled, when mutual dependency turns to betrayal, resentment, and recrimination.
Ultimately, the Banshees of Inisherin is about the loneliness of human existence. How lonely it is to be an artist. An outcast. A simple but well-meaning man who doesn’t have the good sense to get off the island and find a life. It is about how small actions can sometimes have dangerous consequences. It’s about how sometimes, in our quest to chase our own legacies, we often forget about the people who mean the most to us.
Ultimately, McDonagh is saying that we can’t measure ourselves by the great things we do. We can’t measure ourselves by success or wealth. It is only the kindness we extend to those with less of everything that ultimately decides our worth. The Banshees of Inisherin is the best film of 2022.