This week, I'm recommending the British comedy "Four Lions," from first-time director Chris Morris. Given the massive international news that broke over the weekend, I thought this film would be a darkly apropos choice. In all honesty, I actually planned on watching and reviewing this film anyway BEFORE the news broke, so it's really just an especially eerie coincidence.
Why is that, you may or may not be asking yourself? Well, "Four Lions" is a dark comedy about a group of hilariously inept jihadists trying to pull off a suicide bombing in the city of London. A controversial premise, yes; but one rife for all sorts of madcap stooge-esque comedy, as well. Despite its often hilarious dialog and occasional moments of explosive slapstick, there is an almost defiant undercurrent of heart running throughout this tale of determined imbeciles. Morris seems to be challenging the audience to root for the actions of these lovable morons, if only because they are just trying SO DAMN HARD to get everything right.
Now, when you take a step back from the action, most of us will likely find the ultimate goal of these aspiring martyrs reprehensible. The performances, however, are just so very enjoyable that it's a little difficult not to care about their fates by the end of the film. The leader of the group, Omar (played with charming determination by Riz Ahmed), serves as the story's heart and soul, as he takes the responsibility of organizing this ragtag group of extremists. This is much to the dismay of fellow jihadist Barry (played with hilariously bull-headed righteousness by Nigel Lindsay), the token white Muslim of the group. The scenes Omar has with his family are especially charming (in a darkly amusing sort of way), such as a scene where Omar is relaying one of his massive fumbles to his young son via the characters from Disney's "The Lion King" in the form of a bedtime story.
Where the film really feels unique, though, is in its final act, where it attempts to balance its dark sense of humor with what can be described as "shit getting real." It does so with moderate success, and while it's not nearly as hilarious as the earlier portions of the film, it certainly has a memorable conclusion.
While its controversial subject matter may be a bit too much for some, those with a taste for dark, wittily written comedy about utter morons should definitely give this film a chance. I've been wanting to see it ever since it's well-received limited release in 2010, and now that it's on Netlix Instant Watch, it is much more easily available. I'd heartily recommend a watch.
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