199 of 1001 Movies: The Crying Game (1993)

Neil Jordan got off to a tad bit of a rough start with The Butcher Boy. Don't get me wrong, it was intriguing and had Jordan written all over it. I just couldn't get past how annoying the child actor was. The Crying Game though seemed like the perfect place for the director to have some decent actors and let them run with a quirky story though, which is what you get. A quirky, dark, thriller with an odd romance. As I was warned before watching this one, don't read anything about it before you do as to not risk even an inch of spoiling yourself and the twist which come as surprises and sometimes not so much.

Summary: Jody is taken captive by IRA terrorists after being lured into a trap by Jude. They are holding him hostage since he is a British soldier and they are wanting one of their members back. Fergus is one of the guy who watches over him while he is captive and unlikely friendship occurs between the two men despite the situation that he will be killed by Fergus' group if their demands aren't met. Jody has a request for Fergus is he dies though. He wants him to travel to Dil, his girlfriend, and tell her how much he loved her.

168 of 1001 Movies: The Butcher Boy (1997)

I wouldn't put together that Neil Jordan directed The Butcher Boy and Interview With a Vampire. Maybe if I was to go back and watch the vampire movie again I would though. The Butcher Boy is a really disturbing movie though. I think going back and reading the novel that it was translated from would somehow give me some insight that the movie just missed. The gist of this movie to me was an unlikable boy in the town just goes mad after not knowing how to deal with his grief.

Summary: Francie and Joe are two best pals, and they seem to have a normal fantasy world that most children create for themselves to play in. Francie has a rough home life though, and his mother is suicidal and his father is an abusive alcoholic. As Joe is growing up and maturing, it seems that Francie is getting left behind in the safety of his childhood, but is feeling the pressure from the bad circumstance of his parents to mature. After his mother dies, it seems that the remainder of Francie sanity collapses and he heightens his abuse of the judgmental neighbor, Ms. Nugent and her son to the point where becomes violent.