In Bruges Trivia Quiz

Answer: Martin McDonagh

"In Bruges" was Director Martin McDonagh's feature film debut. He did a fantastic job getting great performances from his cast. McDonagh was able to take the story of a couple of misfit hitmen that was confined to a small European town and make it completely suspenseful and engrossing, and add elements of comic relief at just the right intervals to keep the story from becoming too dark.

The movie itself was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Comedy or Musical, but it lost out to "Vicky Cristina Barcelona", Woody Allen's romantic comedy starring Scarlett Johansson, Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem.

Answer: Ralph Fiennes

Both Ray and Ken worked as paid killers for crime lord Harry, played masterfully by Ralph Fiennes. Harry was none too pleased with the way that Ray had botched his prior assignment, and he had to decide what to do about it. Fiennes is a gifted English actor, who has played both good and bad characters in his career. Harry is one of the latter, and Fiennes' heartlessness comes through chillingly.

It is a tribute to the screenplay that the audience was able to understand the high stakes involved, and still laugh at the dialogue's wit and cleverness.

Answer: Martin McDonagh

Not only did McDonagh's direct "In Bruges", but he also wrote the original screenplay for the film. The story and writing were so good, in fact, that he was nominated for an Oscar (though he lost out to Dustin Lance Black who won that year for "Milk", the true story of the assassinated gay activist and politician from San Francisco starring Sean Penn). McDonagh did win the BAFTA award for best original screenplay for "In Bruges".

Answer: Colin Farrell

The part of hitman Ray was supposed to be English in the original version of the screenplay, but it was changed to Irish when Colin Farrell was cast. Farrell did a great job with a difficult part. His character was sarcastic, caustic, clever and, surprisingly enough, likable and relatable (even though he made his living by heartlessly killing others).

The audience found itself drawn into the tale, despite our desire to think that we would have nothing in common with a character like Ray. Colin Farrell won the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical for his work in "In Bruges".

Answer: Brendan Gleeson

The choice of Brendan Gleeson to play Colin Farrell's cohort and fellow hitman, Ken, was a stroke of genius. Both actors are Irish, and their rapport was believable and enjoyable. One particularly impactful scene was when Ray tried to confront his last job and how he might move on from that.

Ray: [crying] 'I killed a little boy!'
[Ken embraces Ray]
Ken: 'Then save the next little boy. Just go away somewhere, get out of this business, and try to do something good. You're not going to help anybody dead. You're not going to bring that boy back. But you might save the next one.'
Ray: 'What am I going to be, a doctor? You need exams.'

Gleeson was also nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical for his performance in this film, losing out to co-star Farrell.

Answer: Elizabeth Berrington

Elizabeth Berrington played the part of Harry's wife and the mother of their three children. Ms. Berrington is probably better known for having played the part of Val in the TV show "Drop Dead Gorgeous".

The part of Natalie was small but memorable. In the first of her two scenes, Harry was particularly angry at Ray for not having done what Harry had wanted. After hanging up, Harry began to destroy his cell phone in anger. Natalie saw what was going on and told Harry to stop mistreating the phone because it was just an inanimate object. Not one to be told what to do, Harry turned to her and told her that she was the inanimate object.

In her other scene, Harry apologized to Natalie:
Harry: I'm sorry for calling you an inanimate object. I was upset.

Answer: Jordan Prentice

One of the colorful characters from "In Bruges" was the dwarf, played by Jordan Prentice. The audience never found out exactly why Jimmy was in the town of Bruges, though he did claim he was in town making a movie. His desperation and boredom with being in Bruges is palpable, and he is a comic figure, played for laughs, but with a bittersweet undertone.

Answer: Clemence Poesy

The cast is rounded out by French actress Clemence Poesy, who plays the role of Chloe, a native of Bruges who made do by selling drugs to tourists and other transient foreigners working in the town for short periods.

Chloe: 'So what do you do, Raymond?'
Ray: 'I... shoot people for money.'
Chloe: [smiling] 'What kinds of people?'
Ray: 'Priests, children... you know, the usual.'
Chloe: 'Is there a lot of money to be made in that business?'
Ray: 'There is for priests. There isn't for children.'

Answer: Eric Godon

The part of Yuri, the local gun dealer in Bruges who also works for Harry, was played by Eric Godon. If his Belgian accent seems authentic to you, it should! He is one of the few Belgians in the cast.

Yuri: 'I also have some dim-dims. You use this word, dim-dims? The bullets that make the head explode?'
Harry: 'Dum-dums. Yeah.'
Yuri: 'Would you like some of these dim-dims? '
Harry: 'I know I shouldn't... but I will.'
[takes whole case of dum-dums]

Answer: Ciaran Hinds

Ciaran Hinds, an Irish actor born in Belfast, plays the part of a priest in "In Bruges". He ends up being one of Ray's victims. The fact that Ray decides to go to confession with the priest before eliminating him adds complexity to his character.

Ray: 'Murder, father.'
Priest: 'Why did you murder someone, Raymond?'
Ray: 'For money, father.'
Priest: 'For money? You murdered someone for money?'
Ray: 'Yes, father. Not out of anger. Not out of nothing. For money.'