Intermission (2003)

Arriving a good five to ten years past the zeitgeist, John Crowley's grungy debut feature manages to offer a smattering of choice performances from some of Ireland's most talented young actors, even if it fails to add anything to the post-Pulp Fiction, post-Trainspotting indie landscape. Treading the middle ground between the sickly sweet ensemble romance Playing by Heart and the heist-for-heist's-sake films of Guy Ritchie, Intermission is shot and edited with such economy, it might give viewers the false impression that it's actually about something. Despite a vague plea for the redemptive power of love over the pitfalls of avarice, it isn't. Instead, Crowley's film offers a handful of usually underappreciated actors the chance to try out quirky personas the way one might sort through thrift-store overcoats: There's the innately sweet Cillian Murphy's befuddled-romantic John; the reliably brilliant Shirley Henderson, almost managing to overcome her underwritten part as mustachioed misfit Sally; and the particularly propulsive Colin Farrell, making the most of his time away from the corrupting Southern California sun as gloss-free street punk Lehiff. Set to the beat of a schizophrenic pop/rock soundtrack, Intermission's cornucopia of suburban amorality may not add up to much, but the performers make certain that it's never less than watchable. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide