The first round of images from Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees of Inisherin shows off the stunning scenery of Ireland. Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Kerry Condon, Barry Keoghan and Jenny the donkey are all prominent characters, but the gorgeous photography will have you thinking about standing amidst vibrantly green grass and steep cliffs above the sea. The narrative will transport viewers to 1923 Ireland, over a century ago. While families and loved ones are being ripped apart by the political upheaval, two lifelong friends are seeing the end of their relationship. Farrell’s Pádraic, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to feel the same way.
When Gleeson’s Colm has had enough of the close link he formerly enjoyed with Pádraic, he chooses to sever all ties with the man. The earliest photographs reflect the intensity of the situation, as Farrell appears to be inconsolable in nearly all of them. As the actor’s character glances through an ex-window, friend’s looking for answers, the actor’s perplexity and desperation are clearly visible and hurting. In a different photo, the two men are seen speaking while sipping on two beers on the rocks. Fortunately for Pádraic, he has a donkey friend named Jenny to keep him company on this journey.
As they go across the Irish countryside, in one photograph, man’s best friend and even more stunning green hills and seaside cliffs can be seen in the backdrop. When Farrell and Keoghan’s characters appear as two drinking companions sitting on a stone barrier by the jaw-dropping cliffs, they share a bottle of liquor. Although the liquid is transparent and may be water, the solemn and distant expressions on their faces lead us to believe it’s something more. Siobhán, Pádraic’s sister, is Condon’s next role. We can already see from her first appearance in the film that she will be searching for something more in life than what their small island village has to offer.
Siobhán is awestruck by the sunset as she stands on a cliff overlooking the ocean, her face expressionless and void. Finally, we see McDonagh and Farrell, the film’s director, smiling as they stroll around the town, a stark contrast to the rest of the photographs. A five-year break after the critically acclaimed Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri marks the director’s (Six Shooter) return to the big screen with this upcoming film. Seeing McDonagh’s new concept take shape in these images gives us hope that the filmmaker, who has already given us such classics as In Bruges and Seven Psychopaths, is on to something special.