Bloody and unbowed, the Boondock Saints are back

'The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day' finally makes it to the big screen

Legal problems are also what delayed the sequel from being made until 10 years after the original, according to the director.

But the Irish are not ones to back down from a fight, and thanks to the millions of fans who bought the DVD and catapulted the film to cult classic status, we now have “Boondock Saints II.”

“You made this. The fans made this,” Billy Connolly told the excited crowd at the movie’s New York premiere on October 20.  

Though 1999’s “The Boondock Saints” didn’t receive glowing reviews from critics, Americans were obsessed with it, and it became an instant cult hit.

Today, there are “Boondock Saints”-themed drinking competitions, and thousands of fans, both men and women, have “Boondock” tattoos. There is also a pretty good chance that  a copy of “Boondock Saints Deluxe Collector’s Edition” is in the room of almost every American college student.

So how much of “The Boondock Saints’” wild success had to do with the film being “Irish”?

“I think [the film’s success] has a lot to do with the Irish background,” star Norman Reedus told IrishCentral. “I think, you know, there’s a lot of drinking, a lot of camaraderie, guys sticking up for guys. I think the alcohol and the fun guy thing is very much Irish.”

“It couldn’t work if they weren’t Irish,” co-star Sean Patrick Flanery added. “I mean that’s at the core.”

The Irishness the “Boondock” films portray is admittedly a stereotypical breed, but Duffy says these stereotypes – the drinking, the fighting, the loyalty, the fierce friendships – is what he knows as an Irish American.

“For me it’s like write what you know” Duffy said. “If it was a bunch of Jewish guys doing this my last name would be Duffinstein.

“But it’s Irish guys. That’s what I know – I wrote what I know. It definitely helps that there’s a stereotypical image of Irish people and I think for the most part a lot of that sh*t’s true.

“There’s just very little bullsh*t with us, and I hate pretending I like people when I don’t, so I don’t really subscribe to that… and I think that comes from the heritage. And we tend to drink.”

Duffy, Reedus and Flanery all say that it’s rare, but every now and then an Irish person will express their displeasure with being portrayed as rowdy, hard drinking vigilantes, but the “Boondock” crew isn’t making any apologies about it.

 “It’s not like we’re a**holes killing innocent people,” Reedus said.

“And if you can’t take a joke go f*ck yourself,” Duffy added.

Though “Boondock II” deals with some intense subject matter – the McManus brothers continuing their holy mission to rid Boston of evil by killing off the criminals – jokes abound, and the Saints certainly know how to have a good time while on their killing spree.

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Nster.com