UNITED STATES
Cornell Daily Sun
By SEAN DOOLITTLE
“Do not despair, one of the thieves was saved. Do not presume; one of the thieves was damned.”
Those familiar with the musings of St. Augustine or, much more likely, the works of Samuel Beckett, will no doubt recognize the above quote which introduces Calvary. The quote concerns itself with the two thieves crucified atop Calvary (or Golgotha, what have you) alongside Jesus, one penitent and one impenitent. To St. Augustine, our fates are almost entirely left up to chance, and whether or not we are saved or damned is out of our control; embracing destiny is the only option.
Beckett cited the quote as a major influence in writing the enigmatic Waiting for Godot, the play that kickstarted the “Theatre of the Absurd” movement and put the Irish playwright on the map. In the play, Vladimir and Estragon find themselves hopelessly meandering, searching without reason, for Godot, for purpose, for God, for meaning. Caught in a cycle, the characters never achieve anything; things just happen.
Thus is the ongoing theme of Calvary, John Michael McDonagh’s second directorial outing following 2011’s The Guard. McDonagh, much like his brother Martin McDonagh (writer and director of some of the best black comedies of the past decade ever, including In Bruges, Seven Psychopaths and my personal favorite, The Pillowman) is no stranger to the absurd and the tasteless. A clear lineage can be traced between the works of the McDonagh brothers and their pioneering countryman, Beckett. While Beckett and both McDonagh’s past work have more or less equally balanced the humor with the darkness, Calvary is often much more gallows than gallows humor. But that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
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