Sightlines · reception
How The Banshees of Inisherin was received
2022 · Martin McDonagh · The Banshees of Inisherin on Sightlines
The arc
An instant awards darling out of Venice 2022, it then went a famous 0-for-9 at the Oscars — and that shutout only cemented its 'robbed' underdog status; it's since settled in as one of the decade's most beloved tragicomedies.
What’s debated
The perennial fight: is it a profound parable of friendship and the Irish Civil War, or two hours of miserablism whose allegory is spelled out a bit too neatly?
Its footprint
"I just don't like ya no more" became instant shorthand for cold-blooded friend break-ups, and Jenny the donkey achieved genuine folk-hero status — complete with a donkey trotted onstage at the 2023 Oscars.
Where it stands
A Letterboxd-era favorite that plays like a 'sad banger' — the go-to modern answer when film fans rank the great films about friendship ending.
Did you know? It reunited Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson with Martin McDonagh 14 years after In Bruges — and despite nine Oscar nominations (tying for the year's most), it won none.
Named by the director
- The Searchers (1956) — McDonagh said 'a Searchers vibe was definitely something we wanted to tap into,' echoing Ford's shots framed through doorways onto the landscape.
- Days of Heaven (1978) — McDonagh named Malick's film as a visual touchstone for the movie's painterly landscape photography.
- John Ford — McDonagh said he and DP Ben Davis leaned into 'that kind of John Ford style of shooting through doorways' and a western feel.
- The Quiet Man (1952) — McDonagh cited Ford's storybook Ireland as a loved-but-suspect vision he wanted to subvert rather than repeat.