THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN

While on the surface an absurdist drama-comedy, The Banshees of Inisherin is an allegory for the Irish Civil War, which took place between 1922 and 1923. Two lifelong friends find themselves at a standstill when Colm (Brendon Gleeson) abruptly ends his friendship with Padric (Colin Farrell). One could easily categorize this film as a dark comedic masterpiece, as it exposes, in both comedic and dramatic fashion, the irrationality and violence in human behavior, which is seen (and heard) on the mythical island of Inisherin and also across Galway Bay where the Irish Civil War is taking place. The character of Padric is filled with despair at what he thinks is Colm’s betrayal of their friendship. Likewise, we can say that Ireland itself is filled with despair as a result of its warring groups of Irish Nationalists – those who supported the Irish Free State under the Anglo-Irish Treaty and those who opposed it. But it should be noted that while there are several references to the fighting on the mainland, the film does not explicitly delve into the politics of the time.

Colm, who is undergoing an existential crisis, feels he has wasted too much time listening to his younger friend yammer about pointless topics and issues in his mundane life. Determined to salvage what time he has left in his life, he composes music with his fiddle and, to show Padric the seriousness of his decision severs their friendship. Despite Padric’s earnest attempts to mend fences, Colm is steadfast in his decision, even promising to cut off his fingers, one by one, should Padric insist on remaining friends. The sudden dark turn in events leaves the audience confused and even a bit disturbed, as Colm later makes good on his promise and cuts off his fingers, one by one. The film’s viewers are left mind-boggled at Colm’s bizarre act of cutting off his fiddle fingers. How will this get him any closer to his goal of composing music? This is where the film takes a deeper and more melancholic approach to shed light on the disastrous wounds of the Irish Civil War. American audiences, unfamiliar with the Irish Civil War, may find it hard to draw connections between the dispute between Colm and Padric and the fighting throughout Ireland. The Irish Civil War was unlike the American Civil War in which the sides were well defined with one side fighting for secession and to preserve slavery and the other seeking to preserve the Union and abolish slavery. The Irish Civil War was a dispute between those who were willing to accept a treaty with Britain after nearly three years of war that fell short of full independence, but provided what the pro-treaty leader Michael Collins referred to as “the freedom to achieve freedom,” and the small minority who opposed the treaty, holding out for a fully independent Irish republic. This film forces viewers to see the absurdity of divisions, whether personal or national, arising for no apparent reason. The divisions caused by the Irish Civil War, like the breach between Colm and Padric, proved long-lasting. Even today, some families in Ireland are divided by the sides they took in the Civil War a century ago.

A viewer without knowledge of Irish history might enjoy the absurdist and comedic elements in the film, and might even understand the breach between the friends, but the viewer acquainted with at least the rudiments of the Irish struggle for independence, the spark that ignited the decolonization of the British Empire in the twentieth century, will gain a deeper appreciation for McDonagh’s film.

The Encounter