The Guard (2011)

An unorthodox Irish policeman with a confrontational personality is teamed up with an uptight FBI agent to investigate an international drug-smuggling ring.

Director:

John Michael McDonagh

Writer:

John Michael McDonagh

Stars:

Ronan Collins, Brendan Gleeson, Don Cheadle

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 14 wins & 23 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ronan Collins	...	Young Man in Car
Paraic Nialand	...	Young Man in Car
John Patrick Beirne	...	Young Man in Car
Liam O'Conghaile	...	Young Man in Car
Christopher Kilmartin	...	Young Man in Car
Brendan Gleeson	...	Gerry Boyle
Rory Keenan	...	Aidan McBride
Declan Mannlen	...	James McCormick (as Declan Mannion)
Laurence Kinlan	...	Photographer
Michael Og Lane	...	Eugene Moloney (as Mícheál Óg Lane)
Liam Cunningham	...	Francis Sheehy-Skeffington
Owen Sharpe	...	Billy Devaney
Fionnula Flanagan	...	Eileen Boyle
Wale Ojo	...	Doctor Oleyuwo
Don Cheadle	...	FBI agent Wendell Everett

Storyline

Sergeant Gerry Boyle is a small-town Irish cop with a confrontational personality, a subversive sense of humor, a dying mother, a fondness for prostitutes, and absolutely no interest whatsoever in the international cocaine-smuggling ring that has brought straight-laced FBI agent Wendell Everett to his door.

---

Plot Keywords:

fbi agent | fbi | drug smuggling | small town | derringer | 

---

Taglines:

The FBI are about to discover that things work a little different around here.

---

Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Thriller

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for pervasive language, some violence, drug material and sexual content

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

Ireland

Language:

English Irish

Release Date:

7 July 2011 (Ireland)

Also Known As:

El irlandés

Filming Locations:

Barna, County Galway, Ireland

Box Office

Budget:

$6,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$76,834 (USA) (29 July 2011)

Gross:

$5,359,774 (USA) (3 February 2012)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Reprisal Films, Element Pictures, Crescendo Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Boyle's reference that "the FBI lad, probably hadn't had this much fun since they burned all those kids up in Waco" is a reference to the Waco Siege of February 1993 where the FBI led an assault on the Mount Carmel Center ranch seventy-six men, women and children including the sect leader of Branch Davidians, David Koresh, died from flames, smoke inhalation, building collapse, or gunfire.

---

Goofs

(00:03:30) When Sergeant Gerry Boyle is first meeting Garda Aidan McBride at the murder scene, he stops his police car while the windshield wipers are up. In the immediate next shoot they are down.

---

Quotes

Gabriela McBride: He's gay. Like when one man put's his...
Sergeant Gerry Boyle: I'm familiar with the mechanics of it, yea.

---

Connections

References Yellow Submarine (1968)

---

Soundtracks

"The Parting Glass"
Traditional arrangements by Liam Clancy, Pat Clancy and Tommy Makem
Performed by Liam Clancy
Courtesy of the Liam Clancy Estate

User Reviews

Protecting comedy

I really don't like those phrases but this movie deserves the "instant classic" tag in my book. B. Gleeson is just amazing and seeing Don Cheadle having a role where he is actually acting is a treat in itself too. He has shown so much potential (Hotel Rwanda to name but one movie), but has done quite a few awful movies too, that I always relish him in the ones that actually are good.

But it's the Gleeson show here and the guy shows he can carry a movie alone. He is funny, witty and his character is quite hard to define. Actually a sort of Dujardin "OSS 117", but more realistically and more cynically I guess. Or if you want to go old school, Pink Panther it is. There is not enough good words I can say about this, so I suggest you go ahead and watch it yourself :o)