Strange and strangely entertaining, Seven Psychopaths is chock full of talent actors and plays like a kind of less ambitious Adaption. It’s very much a screenwriter’s movie, as the main character, Marty (Colin Farrell), is a screenwriter who drinks too much. He’s also working on a screenplay called Seven Psychopaths, so part of the movie is his screenplays and the other parts are the actual story.
But reality and the screenplay merge in weird ways, as some of the characters in the screenplay turn out to be based on actual characters and some characters attempt to become characters in the screenplay. It’s hard to explain more without giving it away. Marty’s friend Billy (Sam Rockwell) and Billy’s friend Hans (Christopher Walken) run a dog kidnapping scheme, where they steal a dog, wait for the owner to post a reward and then return it for the money. Unfortunately, they steal the wrong dog. It’s owned by Charlie (Woody Harrelson), a local gangster who loves his Shih Tzu. Tom Waits also plays a role.
Like Adaption, the characters talk about the screenplay and some of those events ironically happen. It’s not particularly clever nor is it particularly lazy. Martin McDonagh, the writer/director, does a nice job of keeping the pacing up and the action flowing. Sam Rockwell is in his glory, chewing up the scenery. Like a movie in a movie, it’s self-referential, but not to the point of annoyance. As the movie unfolds, it’s being written, which makes one wonder what the actual movie would be like.
Still, it’s really enjoyable and funny. Maybe not as action packed as the trailer would have you believe, but it has a great opening and it’s a decent ride. I say, go see it. I give Seven Psychopaths 8 keggers out of 10.
