The song 12 Days of Christmas usually includes "seven swans a-swimming" but this year I want you to change it to "Seven Psychopaths a-streaming" as the brilliant action comedy is leaving Amazon Prime Video on the 1st of January.
If you've never heard of this 2012 movie, why should you care? The answer is that it's written and directed by Martin McDonagh. The man behind some of the best black comedies of the 21st century, In Bruges, The Banshees of Inisherin and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.
Fans of those movies will see some familiar faces in Seven Psychopaths, namely Colin Farrell and Sam Rockwell. But they are far from the only big names in this star-studded caper with Christopher Walken, Tom Waits and Woody Harrelson joining the fun too.
McDonagh's background is as a playwright and you can always tell thanks to his razer sharp dialogue and tight scenes. No word is ever wasted, it's either essential to the story or achingly funny.
Farrell plays Marty, a struggling writer (I can't relate) is working on a new screenplay Seven Psychopaths when his low-level criminal best friend Billy kidnaps the wrong dog from the wrong man.
From there the story descends into a brilliantly chaotic farce the likes of which only McDonagh can manage. If In Bruges was his equivalent of Waiting For Godot, patiently waiting for something that may never happen, this is his darkly comedic take on Hamlet, a bloody mess of misunderstanding and revenge.
On reviews aggregator Rotten Tomatoes the movie has a solid score of 83% but I would still argue that is on the low side considering the quality of the story and those involved. Certainly, you won't have seen anything quite like it before (outside of McDonagh's other work).
If you're after some more laughs on Prime Video, check out the rather quirky comedy that was recently added to the service with a massive 92% on Rotten Tomatoes.
