In Bruges: A Dark Comedy Surrounding Redemption – Editorial

Premise

Celebrating the 11th Year Anniversary of In Bruges. Do humans have a soul? This is one of the questions that’s been evading us since there ever were questions. No one has definitive answers, but opinions. Religions famously claim to know the answer by preaching thousands of years old books to people. Their formula is simple. Read the book and the book will tell you what’s good or not.

Leave the proof of the existence of soul to the Philosophers and Scientists. We can agree on something simple for a start. A more common and basic definition is this – when you do some good, your soul rises and when you do something bad, it weighs on your soul. So, what really happens when a soul is so stained with the bad things the person did, that he thinks to self that he doesn’t deserve to live? What’s the answer? Redemption… That’s the only way many can suggest, other than death of course.

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Argument

The movie was set in Belgian’s medieval town, Bruges. Ray (Colin Farrell) is a hitman who accidentally killed a little boy on his first job, hiding out in Bruges. We get to watch his way to redemption from the point where most of us cannot return. On the way to redemption, Ray tries to kill himself, falls for a girl, spends time with unusual companions and finally with the help of his Friend, finds redemption.

Death of a kid is one of the most awful things we face as humans. Death is always gloomy, but, we can all agree that death of an innocent life that never asked to be born in this mess of a world in the first place does make us feel bluer. In the movie, Ray doesn’t like Bruges at all. He was never shy to be pessimistic about the beautiful town whenever he gets a chance. Truth is, he even starts cussing the town before he even gets to see it.

We might even get away for wishing him dead after learning the truth about what he did. But Ray’s words are just a cover up for just how sick he feels inside knowing that he was the reason for a little boy’s death. Whether intended or not. Not even the well preserved medieval town of Belgium. Not even the f**kin’ Bruges.

Eventually, when he finds his way to redemption during a powerful conversation with a fellow hitman. But, by the end of the movie, Ray still ends up between life or death, redeemed for the heinous thing he did and hoping for a second start.

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Conclusion

We never might know if there is such a thing called a soul or not. We all might find a good reason to kill ourselves, not able to forgive the things we did or happened to us. But all it takes to find redemption is a little time, air and a good conversation. Which is why In Bruges is dark comedy surrounding redemption.