SIX SHOOTER (2004)

With Martin Mcdonagh's new film, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri already getting awards buzz and lots of critical acclaim, I thought I'd revisit his first foray into cinema, the short film, Six Shooter.

Brendan Gleeson plays a grieving widower who meets an extremely disturbed, strange young man on a train ride. 

Though I would go on to read Mcdonagh's The Pillowman and watch In Bruges, I went into this fresh, just looking for new interesting short films online. Immediately, I was struck by Mcdonagh's deft balancing of tonal shifts throughout his short piece. Where most directors falter when weaving between various tonalities, Mcdonagh had a clear understanding right off of the bat of how to keep his characters and narrative balanced, yet unpredictable. Six Shooter is as darkly funny as any of his other works, and just as macabre, dealing with grief, guilt and violence. 

Six Shooter is an excercise in momentum. Starting out with Brendon Gleeson visiting his dead wife, it moves steadily, building tension and suspense until it reaches an explosive climax with an ironic tag.

At the time I saw it, this felt like a breath of fresh air, filmic-wise. Something smart and thoughtful with beautiful contrasting depictions of violence. A scene involving a cow with trapped win exploding into a bloody mess, is nicely juxtaposed with the gorey shootout involving the disturbed young man on the train. Mcdonagh is brilliant about laying bare his themes, while keeping them layered and subtly executed. And all the while peppering in hilarious dialogue ironic payoff.

Six Shooter was important, too, in learning to distinguish between a film that is directed and one that is written. By this, I mean, a film that owes the majority of its quality to the direction and dialogue on the page. Whereas, a film that is directed, owes most of its quality to the decisions of the director. David Fincher, for example, does not write his own films and most certainly raises the quality of the screenplays he's given to new heights when he directs them. His films, while finely written, are mostly known for their distinct visual style, rather than the dialogue or characters. All of Mcdonagh's films are written, first and foremost. For me, the distinction is a fascinating one and Mcdonagh's debut short helped to clarify it.

Six Shooter is a wonderful short piece with a fantastic performance by Gleeson and certainly worth a watch before heading into Three Billboards.