THE GUARD

When FBI agent Wendell Everett (Don Cheadle) arrives in a small town in Western Ireland to investigate an international drug-smuggling ring, he is little prepared for the visible apathy and invisible corruption that confronts him. He is even less prepared for the attitude of Sergeant Gerry Boyle (Brendan Gleeson), whose ideas of America and seemingly inappropriate humour often leave him lost for words, but whose brutal honesty is the one thing he can count on. Writer/Director John McDonagh has produced a film full of top shelf comedy, suspense and pathos. This ranks as one of Gleeson’s best performances. (CC) ****