In Bruges (2008)

Colin Farrell spends a whole movie furious at one of the prettiest towns in Europe, and that grudge carries the first half. Ray hates the canals, the churches and the chocolate shops, and he says so like a kid dragged through a museum on a school trip. Brendan Gleeson’s Ken trails behind him with a guidebook, the cheeriest hitman you will ever meet. Then Ralph Fiennes calls, and the movie swerves. Harry is a gangster with strict rules and a temper you can hear through the phone line. The honest problem is the tone. It lurches from goofy tourist comedy to real grief to a very serious standoff, and a running gag about an actor’s height has not aged well. Still, the guilt under all of it is real, and Farrell’s guilty, wet-eyed stare carries it. It made just $7.8 million domestic and found its crowd later. An 8.8 because it’s funny and heartbreaking in the same breath. $988 says you look up train tickets to Belgium tonight and then feel weird about it.

What works: Gleeson and Farrell bickering like an old married couple, Ralph Fiennes losing his temper over the phone, and dialogue so sharp it hums.

What doesn’t: The tone swings hard between slapstick and grief, and a running gag about an actor’s height has not aged well at all.

Who it’s for: People who like their crime movies talky, sad and funny at once, and anyone who has been dragged on a vacation they didn’t pick.