There's so much to love here but I settled for seven.
1) Colin Farrell playing an Irishman.
Colin Farrell has the potential to be a formidable talent. The problem is that his best work usually comes when he speaks in his native accent. His best work comes when he's unburdened by a generic American accent, he can play looser and wilder, and just have more fun on screen. When he is on, he is really on. McDonagh wisely understood this, having directed one of Farrell's best performances with In Bruges, and kept the actor's brogue in tact.
2) Walken's reaction to a shotgun-toting Zeljko Ivanek
Christopher Walken is a legend. Simple fact. He doesn't work nearly as much as he should, but when he does you can be sure he won't phone it in like some of his peers (De Niro, Pacino, for example). Walken is 69 years old and still has a singular enthusiasm and energy, his brief exchange with the also-great Zeljko Ivanek is one of the funniest, understated gags I have seen in a while. I cannot wait to see more classic Walken.
3) Tom Waits with a rabbit.
Is there really any reason to expand on this?
4) Woody Harrelson hopefully filling Mickey Rourke with regret.
Mickey Rourke is infamously misguided when it comes to career choices. Ever since his remarkable return to prominence in The Wrestler, the callus-faced thesp has been resisting his comeback with one bad choice after another, burning more bridges than a vengeful billy-goat on a troll hunt.
One of Rourke's latest indiscretions was dropping out of Seven Psychopaths, where he was originally in the role of the dog-loving lunatic (which seemed right up Rourke's street), claiming: "The director was a jerk off. He wanted a whole lot for nothing."
Woody Harrelson stepped in, the former-Cheers star has been on a real upswing of late with his Oscar-nominated performance in The Messenger, his nom-worthy role in Rampart and hitching his wagon to mega-blockbuster The Hunger Games. Seven Psychopaths looks like another role that will perfectly utilise Harrelson's unique physical presence and soft-spoken line delivery, and will hopefully make Mickey Rourke sick to his idiot stomach.
5) Martin McDonagh's witty style translates to the States.
McDonagh's scripts are distinctly Irish, a mix of optimism and defeatism, an incredulous face staring down the lunacy of the world. Given that I've never seen one of his plays performed on a US stage, I wondered how his dialogue would sound coming from a predominantly American cast. The result appears to be much the same; apparently "funny" really is a universal language.
6) "It's their blood, it's his puke."
McDonagh is no stranger to violence, his stage work has moments of savage brutality (The Pillowman) and In Bruges managed to mix up comical violence with harrowing, senseless death. It looks like Seven Psychopaths is definitely eager to indulge in one of those things - but don't be surprised if events take a dark turn in the film itself.
7) "An eye for an eye..." Philosophy for dummies.
In Bruges took the hitman movie and merged it with philosophy, a rather elegant and subtle discussion of life and death, sin and redemption, giving the darker aspects to the story real pathos and allowing the comedy a cathartic punch. McDonagh's little brother also liked to mix up a bit of philosophy into his scripts with The Guard.
The closing scene of this trailer has more philosophy for you, filtered through the bull-headed logic of a simpleton. Over-thinking profound truths and making an absolute mess of them, yet striking a truth of its own. McDonagh rarely provides one-note scripts, even his most overtly comical work has layers of subtext and emotional weight, so I would expect this amusing exchange to be a fairly important part of the film. It may be foreshadowing to something heavier than this quirky, upbeat trailer indicates.
Source: YouTube
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