Pixie
PARAMOUNTIrish-grown comedy has stunned audiences for decades. It is the lifeblood of quality. While the glory days of Father Ted may be beyond us, there are still those looking to adopt the rolling green beauties of the country into a place of action and anger.
The Guard placed thick pangs of complacent cop thriller themes into a sleepy Irish setting, and Pixie wishes to do something similar. Between Pixie and Normal People, Sligo seems the popular destination for bouts of fiction. It seems the right place for reality-bending works, pieces that will not shatter realism but will not push anyone further than accepting there are irregular oddities in the rollicking landscapes of Ireland.
Collecting Colm Meany and Dylan Moran to give off a sense of actual Irish representation, much of the film is dominated by Olivia Cooke and Ben Hardy. They are solid draws for such a film, despite their dialogue being forgettable and Daryl McCormack is underwhelming at times. Each character is either a bumbling, terrified protagonist or a pistol-whipping villain who has more time for drugs than they do for formidable achievements in the field of acting reasonable. There is no reasonability found within Pixie, and that is where its charm lies. Irreverent and manic in that wry Irish style, there are a few pockets of gold to be found throughout the script.
Beyond the floral-print apron-wearing gangster Meany portrays and a nice leading role from Cooke, Pixie is reliant on the same few jokes about drugs and sex that audiences will have heard before. There is a sense of familiarity despite the jokes being ripped off and riffed on from other projects. However, the films largest issue is its simplicity. In its latter stages, Pixie chugs along well enough. As the laughs finally run riot, the surprise comes not from the variety of humour on offer, but from the credits beginning to roll just as Pixie starts to warm up. Its final half-hour is tremendous, and much of the build-up to get there is not all that necessary. While this final third does not go anywhere in particular, it is at least fun to see the back-and-forth between a trio of characters who are starting to get a feel for their characteristics.
Gear, guns and great old craic, Pixie begins to feel similar to Snatch, and that is not meant as a compliment. Rather than fashioning a suitable or interesting narrative, it wishes to rely on quips and quotes that will stand the test of time. There is not much more director Barnaby Thompson could do, aside from producing a faster pace and frequent bouts of side-splitting humour. You cannot rely on intermittent chuckles alone, there must be some form of sustenance. No such luck with Pixie.