The Boondock Saints (1999)

I'm preparing to watch Boondock Saints II so I figured I'd refresh my memory and watch the first movie since it's been years since I've seen it.

Man, five minutes in I realized I didn't remember anything about this movie.

All right, right off the bat, let's get this out of the way. Some of the acting is suspect. In fact, most of the acting is suspect. David Della Rocco is so bad I was almost glad when he died so I wouldn't have to watch him try to act anymore. Plus, most of the acting seems even worse when compared to William Dafoe's powerhouse performance. The man is balls to the walls awesome.

But, holy shit, does he make for one ugly broad.

The other problem is the story. The ending with the father being Il Duce - lame. It just seemed a little too left field for my taste.

The final problem before I talk about the awesomeness is the humor. I almost wish there was less humor in the movie. At times it seems out of place. It's almost as if the movie couldn't decide whether or not it was an action movie or a comedy and some action movies can be both (Demolition Man), but this one didn't quite pull it off.

All right, on to the awesomeness. First, the premise is superb. Two Irish twins, fed up with the justice system, take matters into their own hands and become vigilantes...love it.

Where this movie excels is the ridiculous action scenes. Yes, they're unbelievable, but they're so fucking cool it doesn't matter. The entire dropping the toilet on the Russians and then jumping off a fucking building onto the other one...borderline ludicrous. But I still enjoyed it.

By far, my favorite scene is the the rope scene. When they fall through the ceiling and get tangled in the rope and you see them spinning and you realize what's going to happen...that's a "piss your pants due to awesomeness" moment. Slightly ridiculous? Absolutely, but very, very awesome.

I've gotta mention William Dafoe's performance again because it does stand out as being stellar. The way he walks the line between being a completely stereotyped homo and being a fully realized character is brilliant. And although some might find it cheesy, I enjoyed the scenes with him listening to opera as he reconstructs the murder scene in his mind. His shirt is ripped and he's sweating and he looks insane, but it works.

So I'm looking forward to watching the sequel. I've heard good things, but...we'll see...

Why It's Awesome: What's not awesome about watching two guys fall out of an air duct, breaking through a ceiling, getting tangled in some rope, spinning around suspended in mid-air and shooting nine gangsters upside-down? If that's not awesome, I don't know what is. Oh, plus they kill Ron Jeremy while he beats off in a titty bar. Again, awesomeness personified.

Best Line:

Special Agent Smecker lies in bed with his homosexual Asian lover. The Asian tries to cuddle up next to him.

Smecker: What are you doing?

Asian Homo: I just wanted to cuddle!

Smecker: Cuddle? What a fag!