INTERMISSION
Directed by: John Crowley.
Produced by: Steve Woolley, Neil Jordan & Alan Moloney.
Written by: Mark O'Rowe.
Director of Photography: Ryszard Lenczewski.
Edited by: Lucia Zuchetti.
Released by: IFC.
Country of Origin: Ireland/UK. 106 min. Rated: R.
With: Cillian Murphy, Colin Farrell, Kelly Macdonald, Colm Meaney, Shirley Henderson, David Wilmot, Michael McElhatton & Deirdre O'Kane.

A tale of intermingling lives in modern Dublin, Intermission stars Colin Farrell as the volatile Lehiff, a petty thief in search of his next heist. Meanwhile, his friend John (Murphy) has broken up with Deirdre (Macdonald), the girl he still loves. She immediately turns to Sam (McElhatton), essentially John's opposite, an older and married banker. After being fired and catching wind of Deirdre's new relationship, John joins forces with Lehiff to make some quick money - by robbing Sam’s bank. Some of the other working-class characters include Deirdre’s lightly-mustached sister Sally (Henderson), embittered by a horrific breakup, and John's best friend, Oscar. Lonely and dejected, he tries to find a girlfriend by visiting a singles club frequented by older and aggressive vixens, like Sam’s deserted wife Noeleen (O’Kane).

The movie is actually much less confusing as it unravels, somewhat gracefully, under newcomer John Crowley's direction. With separate plots converging and a sardonic tone, it is essentially a poor man’s Pulp Fiction or Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. But Intermission is less interested in style and violence as the enforcer of fate, emphasizing, instead, how relationships do work out, in this case, for the best. The characters are eventually paired off, and you can guess who ends up with whom. The writing in this quirky comedy is at times subtle and generally unimpeachable, but the acting is what holds together this gritty pseudo-documentary. Farrell’s performance is especially refreshing, perhaps his most realized and charismatic role to date. The film’s quick-editing style and its sometimes mean-spirited sense of humor may be off-putting to some viewers, but the tension is released by the mostly tidy and felicitous ending (except for the last violent plot twist). As John would say, “not f-----’ bad.” Joel Whitney, screenwriter/poet, teaches at Fordham University
March 19, 2004