Calvary (2014)
Cast includes: Brendan Gleeson (Gangs of New York), Chris O’Dowd (Bridesmaids), Kelly Reilly (Sherlock Holmes), David Wilmot (The Guard)
Writer/Director: John Michael McDonah (The Guard)
Genre: Drama | Humor | Mystery | Noir (100 minutes)
The things you hear in the confessional these days… “I was 7 years old when I first tasted semen.” “I’m here to listen,” says Father James. The voice on the other side talks about being raped by a priest when he was 7 and for 5 years after that. “Have you gotten any professional help?” Father James asks. “So I can learn to cope? Maybe I don’t want to cope. Maybe I don’t want to learn to live with it.” Anyway, that priest is dead now. “So there’s no answer for you?” As it turns out, someone is going to pay to pay for these sins. “There’s no point in killing a bad priest,” says the voice. “Killing a good priest… that would be a shock.” (It worked in the Bible… crucifying Christ for the sins of others.) “You’re a good priest, Father James. I’m gonna kill you.” Not right now… he’ll give the father “enough time to get his house in order.” Next Sunday at the beach… it’s a date.
Father James has become a beloved part of the parish… not so much for his godliness but for his humanity… always kind but never out of touch with reality. That’s why everyone in this beautiful Irish seaside community relies on him… and what an odd bunch of characters they are. “That’s what I’ve always liked about you Father… you’re just a little too sharp for this parish,” says Veronica, the local serial adulteress. Father James regularly brings supplies to an elderly recluse… How’ve you been? “Oh, at death’s door. And you?” “The same,” answers Father James. The recluse wants Father James to bring him a gun next time… a Walther PPK, so he can end his life in style. “Where would I get a gun from?” “Oh, come on… we’ve never been short of guns in this country.” In the meantime, Father James’s daughter from before he was a priest is back home from London after a botched suicide attempt. Father James will never understand why… with so much to live for. “Every moment of living has it’s own logic,” says Fiona and he can hardly argue with that. “Do you think it was an idle threat?” asks Father Leary when he learns about the unusual confession. Father James isn’t sure. Does Father James know who it was? Yes, he believes he does. (We don’t, however.)
Calvary is a hard movie to classify. It’s dark and it’s humorous, but it’s not a dark comedy. It has an element of mystery, but it’s not exactly a mystery. Also, your own religious upbringing is likely to affect your expectations. As the days count down, we find ourselves really wishing we had listened better in the opening scene, because we know the man who says he’s going to kill Father James must be one of the town’s odd characters. It has a wonderful cast, and it’s a beautifully made film. Yet it has a trajectory that feels a bit aimless at times. It does have some interesting insights about life, but it isn’t until the very end that we realize it’s more than just a quirky bit of fun. If you enjoy talking about films afterward, this one has quite a bit to reflect on because the aimless quirkiness makes more sense at the end. The father-daughter relationship is central. Fiona feels that after her mother died her father abandoned her by becoming a priest. Maybe Father James isn’t the saint some say he is… “needs taking down a peg or two, that’s what he needs.” The father laments, “There’s too much talk about sin… not enough talk about virtue… Forgiveness is highly underrated.”
4 popped kernels
Parish priest is threatened in the confessional but given a week to get house in order
Popcorn Profile
Rated: R
Audience: Grown-ups
Gender Style: Neutral
Distribution: Mainstream Limited Release
Mood: Sober
Tempo: Cruises Comfortably
Visual Style: Nicely Varnished Realism
Nutshell: A priest, quirky parishioners and a death threat
Language: True to life
Social Significance: Thought Provoking
