Intermède

Dublin. The producer of a small news segment about the people, Ben(O'Suilleabhain, toying with that edge) wants to do a show on cop and self-proclaimed hardass Jerry(Meaney, determined and volatile), who is harassing small-timer Lehiff(Farrell, playing to his strength as a charming bad boy), who thinks of a bigger scheme. He will need people for it, so he approaches bus driver Mick(O'Byrne, kind but needing money for the missus, or, more appropriately, her plans for new floors, a shed, and...), whose friend John(Murphy, nice but keeps his feelings bottled up) misses his ex Deirdre(MacDonald, sweet) who, get this, has already gotten together with Sam(McElhatton, defensive) who left his wife of 14 years for her, understandably making her a bit upset.

Thus this weaves the people and story lines in with one another, often letting us spend just a little time with one situation, allowing it to be, as the film is, fairly fast-paced, effective in its establishing and developing of characters, plot and the dark, quirky and harsh comedy, and, in spite of everything being set up and paid off on, immensely surprising. Along the way, we explore the themes of relationships, job situation, money and happiness. The ingredients of life, right there! And it manages to mix in drama, and maintain its Irish roots and identity throughout. The occasional intercutting of mounting tensions in different locations is a great tool, and at no point do we lose interest or track of any of the connected tales.

There is a lot of strong language, some bloody, violent and disturbing content and a little sexuality in this. The DVD comes with interesting interviews with crew(about 4 and a half minutes) and cast(7 and a half minutes) and trailers for The United States of Leland, The Butterfly Effect, Step on It, Monster, The Passion of The Christ, Sky Captain and the world of Tomorrow, Godsend and Inkasso. I recommend this to any fan of local flavor and the superb cast. 7/10

it is a not soft exercise of honesty. smart script, great cast and a lot of events. dark humor and a classic story about basic values and their price. more than cynical picture of characters lives, it is a bitter story who remember the best pages of American literature. because the frustrations, the desires, the search of happiness, the horrible job and the taste of freedom are sides of same need of sense. and the science to transform all in a seductive labyrinth, who remember many others, to impose not a fantastic end but the normal solution with its delicate flavor of perfect circle are virtues of a movie who remains a challenge or, maybe, an experience. if it is an experience, the whole guilt is result of extraordinary cast job.

Intermission is one of those modern multiple storyline films in which a group of characters lives intertwine. And, as per usual involves a car crash. These factors tie it to the likes of Magnolia, Amores Perros, 21 Grams, Crash, 13 Conversations About One Thing and many more films I'm sure that escape me at this point. So what does Intermission have to offer that these films do not? For one, the acting talent involved is pretty much a who's who of Irish (and Scottish) actors at present. Colin Farrell, Cillian Murphy, Colm Meaney, Shirley Henderson and Kelly Macdonald. The other main factor in the quality of Intermission lies in it's script, which comes across as funny, engaging and despite the comparisons made above is fairly original. It is most definitely a lighter affair than some of it's contemporary rivals listed above, and though not groundbreaking by any means, is a well-made and engaging piece of work.

I guess the fact that it has a great cast and a lot of black humour is what makes it so fun. But it has a good script, nice sound and that thick accent is funny as hell.

As some other guy here said, movies that show a lot of interconnected subplots that elevate the level of intimate knowledge about the characters is unlikely to get old, at most it is in danger of being done to death.

Bottom line: this is an Irish "Crash". I found it well done and funny, although a bit slow at times and you have to strain your ears a bit if English is not your mother tongue. However, I advice against translations, as you risk getting something an illiterate 10 year old thought he heard, like I did :(

to be honest, the first scene sums this movie up, it's a punch in the face. you have to have a very dry sense of humor to like this movie, i don't think it was made for the usual "american" market. our culture is geared toward in your face comedy, like old school or dodge ball, where subtle darker humor about everyday life gets lost. husbands leave wives, people get fired from terrible jobs, and in general have crappy lives. but it is up to us to enjoy what we have, and finding the strength to keep on going no matter what, and this movie is like that. it has an all star cast, from Colin Farrell to Colm Meany, Shirley Henderson to Cillian Murphy they all shine like the stars they are.