Grabbers (2012)

I drink to save the world...

Or at least to survive a hoard of blood sucking aliens that have taken over a small Irish island. That is the premise of Grabbers. This has to be my favorite Irish film since Waking Ned Devine. Grabbers has all the right ingredients for an entertaining film. Aliens, romance, beautiful scenery and drunken Irish men and women trying to make coherent decisions.

The Premise

A squid-like alien race is trying to take over a small island off the coast of Ireland. The Irish police force discover, after a drunken encounter with one of their own, that these bloodsucking creatures can't tolerate alcohol. It is now up to them to keep the town drunk while they figure out how to defeat the aliens.

My Take

You can't go wrong when the Irish are poking fun at the Irish for being drunk. There was so much development in even the minor characters of this movie, that it made me want to visit this town. Aside from the killer aliens, of course. I don't know if writer Kevin Lehane and director Jon Wright worked together closely on this project or not, but the script and the direction went together seamlessly. Lehane wrote a script full of humor and quit wit, which I personally love. There were a lot little moments between characters that let you know how deep their friendships or relationships ran without ever going into long, drawn-out back stories. Wright seems to have that rare knack of bringing out the best in his actors. They were so funny without ever putting forth any real effort. And you would swore that entire cast was actually drunk.

Richard Coyle was Garda Ciaran O'Shea, the officer with a drinking problem. American audiences have seen Coyle most recently as Simon Fischer on Covert Affairs. He is also better known as Jeff on Coupling. But Coyle played the alcoholic Irish cop, OShea, in Grabbers with such ease that it was easy to erase the images of his former characters. I could almost smell him, he was so hungover. He was mean and sarcastic and yet likable in a pathetic sort of way. Then a woman came into his life.

That woman was Ruth Bradley who played, Garda Lisa Nolan, the workaholic. I am unfamiliar with Bradley's work, but I loved her in Grabbers. I don't think I have ever seen a better drunk. This poor woman's character was a strict, by the book police officer who was suddenly expected to do her job completely smashed. And she did it with such gusto that we couldn't stop laughing. Even better, we were laughing with her, not at her.

I loved the bartender, Brian, played by David Pearse. This poor man let the entire town take over his bar. Russell Tovey was hysterical as the straight-laced scientist who can't handle his liquor. I'm still holding out hope that they'll find him sleeping it off somewhere. There was a drunk priest, little old ladies, little old men, bitter girlfriends, Irish drinking songs, and many an homage to classic horror films. The ones I caught were to Gremlins, Aliens, and Tremors.

The Verdict

If you love Sci-fi, horror and humor you will probably like this movie. It moves really fast but still takes the time to get you invested in the story and the characters. The script was paired up with just the right director. So raise a toast! I give this movie 8/8 tentacles. I think that everything came together just right in this one.