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Bloody and unbowed, the Boondock Saints are back

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

MEGHAN SWEENEY

IrishCentral.com Staff Writer

Published Thursday, October 22, 2009, 2:53 PM

Updated Monday, October 26, 2009, 12:48 PM

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Read more: Troy Duffy, Boondock Saints, Norman Reedus, Sean Patrick Flanery, Culture and Lifestyle, Irish Ancestry, Billy Connolly, Boston, IrishCentral.com, Clifton Collins Jr.

The Boondock gang: Connor MacManus (Sean Patrick Flanery), dad Noah 'Il Duce' MacManus (Billy Connelly), Murphy MacManus (Norman Reedus) and their new sidekick Romeo (Clifton Collins Jr.)

After a 10-year wait that felt like an eternity, the moment that Irish Americans have been waiting for has finally arrived: the Boondock Saints are back with a bang.

“Boondock Saints II” has finally made it to the big screen, and the film’s legions of fans have been showing up in their thousands to the sequel’s premiers.

Connor and Murphy MacManus, played by Sean Patrick Flanery and Norman Reedus, have put a hold on their vigilante lifestyles and have been hiding out on a sheep farm in Ireland with their father, Noah ‘Il Duce’ MacManus, played by famous Scottish comedian and actor Billy Connolly.

But when news is delivered that the Saints have been framed for the murder of a Boston priest, the brothers drop their potatoes, grab their guns, replace their Aran sweaters with pea coats, and head back to the U.S. to take care of business in the name of Catholic truth and justice.

A bit kitschy? Perhaps.

But Irish-American director Troy Duffy is in the business of giving the thousands of diehard “Boondock” fans what they want, which is precisely what “The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day” accomplishes.

“We wanted to do an honest job here,” Duffy told IrishCentral.com in an interview on Tuesday. “This fan base means a sh*tload to us. They made this film successful, and we were basically abandoned by Hollywood. So we did it for them.”

The abandonment Duffy refers to is movie execs’ decision to release the original “Boondock Saints” to just five cinemas in 2000, and Duffy says he and the actors hardly saw a dime of profit from DVD sales.

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Posted by Mairtin on November 11,2009 | 12:22PM

I think it is bloody marvellous although I suppose I am biased inasmuch that I play the role of Fr. Sibeal McManus, the priest who is brother to Billy (Connolly) and uncle to Sean Patrick and Norman and who also appears at the end of the movie with Julie Benz and a very well known actor. Mairtin O'Carrigan

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The Irish movies industry has grown somewhat in recent years thanks partly to the promotion of the sector by The Irish Film Board and the introduction of heavy tax breaks. Some of the most successful Irish movies include The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006), Intermission (2001), Man About Dog (2004), Michael Collins (1996), Angela's Ashes (1999), The Commitments (1991) and Once (2007). In 2005 a Jameson Whiskey-sponsored poll selected the top 10 Irish movies: 1. The Commitments (1991), 2. My Left Foot (1989), 3. In the Name of the Father (1993), 4. The Quiet Man (1952), The Snapper (1993), 6. Michael Collins (1996), 7. The Field (1990), 8. Intermission (2003), 9. Veronica Guerin (2003), 10. Inside I'm Dancing (2004). In the past many Irish movies were censored or banned, owing largely to the influence of the Catholic church, although virtually no cuts or bans have been issued in recent years. Ireland has also proved a popular location for shooting films, largely due to the tax breaks, with The Quiet Man (1952), Braveheart (1995), Reign of Fire (2002) and King Arthur (2004) all being shot in Ireland. The first film ever shot in Ireland was The Lad from Old Ireland (1910), which was advertised as "The first ever film recorded on two continents". The Irish movie was a short silent story about a young Irishman who went to the USA to find riches, before returning home to save his family home from creditors. The first cinema in Ireland (the Volta) was opened in 1909. Ireland has a high rate of cinema admissions — the highest in Europe. The biggest multiplex Irish movies chain in the country is Ward Anderson (owners of the Cineplex, Omniplex, and Savoy brands), with other cinemas being owned by United Cinemas International, Cineworld (formerly UGC Cinemas), and Vue (formerly Ster Century). One of the largest Irish owned independent cinema chains is Storm Cinemas, with cinemas currently in Belfast, Limerick, Waterford, Navan, Naas, Portlaoise and Cavan. In Autumn 2005, a new multiplex cinema chain, Movies(at) entered the market, opening its first cinema in Dundrum, with Galway and Swords sites to come. There is also a large video rental market for Irish movies, dominated by Xtravision, a subsidiary of Blockbuster.

Bloody and unbowed, the Boondock Saints are back

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

Most recent of 1 Comments - See all comments

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