Hype can be a killer.

Yesterday afternoon, I settled in for a showing of SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS by writer/director Martin McDonough. The film had its premiere here at TIFF this weekend, but perhaps a month ago or more, it actually had a test screening here in town. I knew a handful of people who went to that test screening, and they all came out raving about it. One of them went so far as to call it the best film they had seen this year. So while I did enjoy what the film had to offer, I’d like to take a moment to thank my friends for setting the bar way too high for this film.

SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS is about a screenwriter named Martin (Colin Farrell). He is mightily trying to write a screenplay called – you guessed it – “Seven Psychopaths”, but having a wicked case of mental block. His friend Billy (Sam Rockwell) suggests that perhaps he needs to meet some real psychopaths. As if to prove he knows of what he speaks, Billy works with Hans (Christopher Walken) as a dog kidnapper. Unfortunately, when they kidnap the dog of an even bigger psychopath (Woody Harrelson), all hell breaks loose.

If you’ve seen Martin McDonagh’s debut film, IN BRUGES, you have an inkling on what to expect in SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS. In a great twist though, this time around Colin Farrell plays the straight man to Sam Rockwell’s clown. And what a clown he is! While the whole dog kidnapping bit is suitably crazy, the way the film keeps returning to the struggle of the “Seven Psychopaths” screenplay is what gives the whole thing its winking wit. Something I will be mulling over between now and a full review in October is whether a film that has weak female characters and points out the weak female characters is self-refferential, or self-defeating.

The film is really Rockwell’s show, a chance for him to do what he does best and drop one-liners. I’m actually beginning to wonder if, like Malkovich and Cage, we should start speaking of the man’s performances and whether or not he gets the chance to go “Full Rockwell”. If you’re a fan of the times he gets to go “Full Rockwell”, then SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS is the film for you. If Rockwell isn’t enough fo you, that’s okay too since Christopher Walken has you covered. Curiously, in comparison to Rockwell, Walken feels dialed-down. I wonder if this means that Rockwell is the next Walken? (Talk amongst yourselves).

SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS is wickedly self-aware, bloody, and very funny. It’s a film I actually look forward to revisiting with a reloaded sense of expectations, and a worthy follow-up to IN BRUGES. I could sit here and tell you that it was one of my favorite films of the week so far…but then, how fair would that be?

SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS has finished it’s TIFF 2012 engagement. It opens in theatres on October 12th (official website)

6 Replies to “SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS Plays TIFF 2012”

  1. I’m sorry that the bar was set so high for you. I went in having only seen the trailer and having LOVED In Bruges when it came out.

    I LOVED this movie, I love the twists, I loved the wit, I loved the Full Rockwell. I do however, recognize that some of this might have been from the fact that I was at the premier and the vibe there was pumping at full force.

    I am definitely planning to see this again once it hits the theatres to see if it holds up the the gold and rose light I paint it with or if it dims at all.

    1. In the days since writing this, the film has actually endeared itself a little more to me, but I can only imagine how things shook down during the carnival that was the gala premiere. A few of us were actually wondering if the higher ticket price might make for a lesser/more subdued crowd…but I’m guessing that wasn’t the case.

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