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Quickie Review - Calvary

Let's start right off with letting you know....this is a comedy. It is not as funny as The Guard, which was written and directed by the same guy and also starred the amazing Brendan Gleason, but it is hilarious at times. What you have to realize is that it isn't necessarily American humor and if you're sensitive about religion, especially Catholicism, you might not love the attitudes within. That being said, you do need to know a little bit about Christianity to get the story. Then again, this was my one knock on the film. I won't give it away in here, but a few huge "symbols," pretty much tell the tale. Taking away a bit of the dramatic mystery, but still holding your attention. It is not a knock on religion so much as an exploration of faith. There are no punches held back, but they also aren't going to floor anyone.

The real joy is the dialogue. The attitudes towards the church and how modern day life, even in a small town in Ireland, are put against the hundreds of years of biblical thought. If you pay attention to what is being said, the issues are ones that go back centuries and how they are handled are the same and different. It's also a movie about smaller stories, but many are used to fuel your curiosity and nothing more. Some will cringe at the finale, but I thought it was perfect, for cinematic and personal reasons.

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