Review: The Lieutenant of Inishmore

Hey readers!

It's time for my review of The Lieutenant of Inishmore.

The Lieutenant of Inishmore is a black comedy by playwright Martin McDonagh. I had previously seen a McDonagh play in 2013, when I went to see The Cripple of Inishmaan starring Daniel Radcliffe. I was highly impressed with The Cripple of Inishmaan and therefore I was rather interested in seeing another of McDonagh's works. Additionally, this particular production has been directed by Michael Grandage, who also directed The Cripple of Inishmaan, as well as other favourites of mine such as Peter and Alice, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Photograph 51 and Labour of Love.

The Lieutenant of Inishmore tells the story of Mad Padraic and his cat, who is knocked over on a lonely road on the island of Inishmore. Who committed this murder and was it an accident? These are the questions Mad Padraic will want to know when he gets back from a stint of torture and chip-shop bombing in Northern Ireland; he loves that cat more than life itself. The characters in the Lieutenant of Inishmore are really interesting; each and every one of them are deeply flawed and they are all either demented or unbelievably unintelligent. The interactions and dialogue between these different characters makes for riveting viewing. All eight characters are excellently written. My only criticism in regards to the storyline is that I felt there could have been more to it. The themes explored throughout the duration of the play are fascinating, and I felt that had the play been longer, it could have explored such themes in more depth. The play currently stands at 1 hours and 45 minutes, including a 15 minutes interval, so I would personally suggest extending the play.

Starring in the leading role of Irish National Liberation Army terrorist Padraic is Aidan Turner.Turner excels in this role, convincingly portraying both the deeply disturbed and psychotic side of the character, as well as his sadder and more sympathetic side. Turner successfully conveys the terror needed for the character by clearly demonstrating his unpredictable nature. As Padraic's Father, Donny, Denis Conway perfectly captures the archetypical Irish man in his 50's living a simple and quiet life on a small remote Island. Conway is perfectly cast in the role and had good chemistry with fellow cast members Aidan Turner and Chris Walley. In the role of Davey, the young boy who accidentally gets caught up in Padraic's acts of terrorism, stars Chris Walley. Walley was outstandingly hilarious; each and every one of the lines that he delivered were extremely amusing. It was Walley that I would argue provided the funniest moments throughout the entirety of the play. In the role of Davey's young sister Mairead, who wants nothing more than to become a so-called 'freedom fighter', was Charlie Murphy. I particularly liked Murphy's characterisation of the role. Her performance is solid, and I was especially impressed with her singing voice. The remainder of the cast includes Will Irvine in the role of Christy, Brian Martin in the role of James, Daryl McCorrmack in the role of Brendan and Julian Moore-Cook in the role of Joey. These four actors were all exceptional, and each added barrels of humour to the play.

The featured star of The Lieutenant of Inishmore is, drum roll please... CHRIS WALLEY!

My two choices for featured star were Aidan Turner and Chris Walley, which left me with a difficult decision to make. Both actors gave phenomenal performances, and they appear to be rather equal. In the end, I eventually chose to award it to Chris Walley, due to the humour that he provided to the production. Walley leaves the audience in stitches, and I doubt the play would have been as funny without his presence.

Now for my final verdict on The Lieutenant of Inishmore. I give The Lieutenant of Inishmore...

The Lieutenant of Inishmore is certainly something else; it was like nothing I had ever seen before. As a result of the show's stellar cast, I have decided to award this production three stars!

Think it should have got a higher rating? Agree with my rating? Think it should have got a lower rating? If so comment below.

Thanks for reading!

-The Reviewer