Film Review: Calvary

A quiet, sad and poignant character study about victimhood and the consequences of evil acts, yet at its heart there is a sweetness that helps offset the darkness. Brendan Gleeson plays the local catholic priest in a very quiet but powerful performance. The film opens with him in the confessional booth receiving a death threat from the other man in the booth, someone local whom he knows yet cannot see.

The following seven days leading to the priest’s execution track him as he appears to take stock of the situation in his community and what comes to light is a feeling of loss, of a way of life that is disappearing and the uncertain future that lies ahead. In many ways it reminded me thematically of Hell or High Water in the way it depicts that sorrow of things lost that you never really appreciated while they were yours.

The motivation for the killer is a sort of revenge for the crimes of the catholic church in Ireland which he personally suffered from. Throughout the film there is a real sense of rejection from people who historically would have been warm toward clergy, as Gleeson’s character faces constant disrespect and scorn. He feels the weight of the crimes committed by his brethren, but he himself is forever open and generous. He struck me as more of a community psychiatrist than a holy man, which I think is really the true function of priesthood, not the political maneuvering, the graft, the corruption and the inhuman crimes that the catholic church is known for.

The title is poignant, recalling the place of Christ’s crucifixion and presenting Gleeson’s character as a sort of stand-in for JC, a sacrificial lamb, an innocent murdered so as to alleviate the injustice of the world. Interesting stuff.

The film is shot beautifully, taking in the picaresque Irish coastline, and it is populated by interesting characters, some of whom border dangerously on parody, but all with some kind of deeper character grounding than you might expect. There are moments of surprising emotion as well as shocking violence, but that feels consistent with the tone of the story, which is about how people cope with horrible events. Everyone has something in their past, including institutions such as the church.

I thought it was a really good movie. It stayed with me for quite a while after it wrapped and I kept thinking about the themes and the situations presented. It’s a little uneven and there are some parts where the film treads a bit close to sentimentality, but it pays for them with darker moments which on the whole balanced out, in my opinion. I thought Brendan Gleeson was terrific, as was the supporting cast, and the movie had some great imagery. I would see it again.