History Film / TheBoondockSaints

The 2003 documentary ''Overnight'' details the rise and fall of Duffy's reputation through the process of making the film, attributing the trajectory in no small part to the [[PrimaDonnaDirector considerable]] [[SmallNameBigEgo overinflation of ego]] he suffered from. While he has tried to [[http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/10/28/the-filmcast-interview-troy-duffy-director-of-the-boondock-saints-2-all-saints-day/ apologize for his past behavior]], watching the doc may give you a better idea of why we had to wait ''ten years'' for the sequel, and why a third film may not ever happen at all, although rumors still persist that it may happen eventually.

* HypocriticalHumor: Smecker, in the same discussion, calls out one of the cops for saying "symbology" instead of symbolism", and also mentions being an expert in "nameology."

* WhatTheHellIsThatAccent: Papa Joe's "Italian" accent doesn't seem to resemble the speaking patterns of any real Italian person, dead or alive.

* TeenyWeenie: Implied; just [[Main/Spoonerism spoonerize]] '''Paul Smecker'''.

Everything comes to a head when the Italians, tired of being picked off like flies, call in the mysterious hitman Il Duce (played by comedian Billy Connolly in one of his rare dramatic roles) to kill Rocco, who they believe is responsible for the killings. When the three Saints and the Duke collide, all hell quickly breaks loose; and when it is finally learned just who Il Duce is, the stage is set for a final reckoning that will bring the South Boston mob to its knees.

''The Boondock Saints'' is a 1999 independent film directed by Troy Duffy, about two [[{{Oireland}} Irish Catholic]] brothers from [[{{Southies}} South Boston]], Connor and Murphy [=McManus=] (played by Creator/SeanPatrickFlanery and Creator/NormanReedus), who become [[VigilanteMan vigilantes]] on a "MissionFromGod" after they are almost killed by Russian mobsters following a barroom brawl on St. Patrick's Day.

''The Boondock Saints'' ran for all of a week in only a few theaters because no major distributor would touch the film after Duffy's falling out with his initial executive producer Harvey Weinstein. (The then-recent crackdown on violent action and horror movies and media in general following the school shooting at UsefulNotes/{{Columbine}} High School earlier that year didn't help things either.) But when it was released several years later on FOX DVD, the movie became a ''massive'' [[CultClassic cult success]]. Fans compare the film to Creator/QuentinTarantino's classics ''Film/ReservoirDogs'' and ''Film/PulpFiction'', and Creator/RobertRodriguez's ''Film/{{Desperado}}''. A sequel called ''The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day'' was rumored for years (the first film ends on one hell of a cliffhanger) and was finally released on October 30, 2009.

The film ''Overnight'' details Troy Duffy's [[SmallNameBigEgo inflation of ego]] during the making of the film. He kinda [[PrimaDonnaDirector went off the rails]], a bit. While he has tried to [[http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/10/28/the-filmcast-interview-troy-duffy-director-of-the-boondock-saints-2-all-saints-day/ apologize for his past behavior]], if you watch the doc you'll get a better idea of why we had to wait ''ten years'' for the sequel, and why a third film may not ever happen at all, although rumors still persist that it may happen eventually.

It is especially popular for St. Paddy's Day drinking games, where if you sip every time someone curses, you're hammered by 30 minutes in. Because of this, some people have never seen the whole movie, nor seen it sober.

* ArtisticLicenseHistory: At the beginning of the film, the monsignor mentions Kitty Genovese during his homily on BystanderSyndrome. However, while the Genovese case (and the New York Times' report on it) did become the TropeCodifier of Bystander Syndrome, in actual fact it was anything but. [[note]]For a start, Genovese was initially attacked at approximately 3:15am, meaning nearly all the potential witnesses were sound asleep. Her lungs were also punctured in the initial attack, meaning she couldn't call for help very loudly. One person did in fact call out and drive off her attacker, and two people called the police. However, Genovese then wandered into a alley leading to a locked door to the building, which is where her returning attacker found, raped, and murdered her. The layout of the building, and the two separate attacks, meant that no one witnessed the entire series of events. Only two witnesses (one for each attack) were even aware that Genovese had been stabbed.(The majority of the dozen witnesses thought the disturbance was a drunken fight or domestic quarrel)One 70 year old woman even ventured out and cradled Genovese as she died.[[/note]] However, while a rival crime reporter found large holes in the story even at the time, the NY Times' reputation prevented anyone making a serious counter-example until a study in 2007; the NY Times themselves didn't acknowledge the inaccuracies until 2016.

* BarBrawl: The [=McManuses=] throw down with the Russian mob dudes early on in the movie and sets the events of the film in motion.

* StrawFeminist: The brothers are set to train a new, very [[ButchLesbian butch]], employee at their meat-packing job who goes ballistic when she hears the phrase "rule of thumb" (citing the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rule_of_thumb#Reference_to_spousal_abuse apocryphal story]] about it being based on wife beating). When the brothers needle her about it she [[GroinAttack kicks Connor in the balls]], then [[WouldHitAGirl Murphy knocks her out with a punch in the face]], getting everyone involved fired.

** Vincenzo [[ADateWithRosiePalms having a go]] in the booth.

* AlmightyJanitor: In dealing with the Saints, Yakavetta turns to retired mobster Augustus [=DiStephano=], who works as a bathroom attendant. He is apparently well-connected enough to get Il Duce out of prison. however, it could also have been just advice and Yakavetta himself had taken Dulce out of prison .

* AlmightyJanitor: In dealing with the Saints, Yakavetta turns to retired mobster Augustus [=DiStephano=], who works as a bathroom attendant. He is apparently well-connected enough to get Il Duce out of prison.

* HandCannon: In the sequel, the brothers trade in their Berettas for [[RareGuns Desert Eagles]] but it is also subverted when Romeo asks for a handgun and the brothers give him a tiny pocket pistol.

* LineageLadder: When Rocco asks if Connor and Murphy will teach him the prayer that they always say when they're executing people, Connor refuses and makes it clear that the prayer is strictly a family matter, citing his "father's father" to indicate that it's been in the family for generations. [[spoiler:This ends up foreshadowing the true identity of Il Duce as the twins' father]]):
-->'''Connor:''' Cool it, Roc. It's a family prayer. My father's father before him, so that's our shit.
* LukeIAmYourFather: [[spoiler:Il Duce is the brothers' father.]]

* MoralDissonance: The brothers' moral compass is a bit loose. They give Rocco a free pass, despite him having a career in the Mafia which failed only because of his own incompetence, because he's a good drinking buddy. And they are perfectly willing to buy all their guns from a man ''heavily'' implied to be [[UsefulNotes/TheTroubles IRA]]. Not to mention they seem to have no qualms about stealing from the mobsters they kill even before they receive their MissionFromGod. Also, Connor [[spoiler:somehow seems to know what heroin tastes like, to which Murphy responds, "How the fuck would ''you'' know?"]] in the sequel. Lampshaded by Rocco:
-->'''Rocco:''' Anybody ''you'' think is evil?\\
'''Connor:''' Aye.\\
'''Rocco:''' Don't you think that's a little weird, a little psycho?

* TrenchCoatWarfare: Il Duce is the current ImageSource for this trope.

Also Hellsing Abridged's version of Alexander Anderson's favorite movie.

* SurprisinglySuddenDeath: [[spoiler:The boys are just celebrating their successful dismantling of the Yakavetta mob when they are ambushed by Panza, who announces his presence by shooting Greenly in the back with lupara shotgun.]]

* SuprisinglySuddenDeath: [[spoiler:The boys are just celebrating their successful dismantling of the Yakavetta mob when they are ambushed by Panza, who announces his presence by shooting Greenly in the back with lupara shotgun.]]

* DenserAndWackier: The film spends the first two acts trying a lot harder to be funny compared to the first movie. Some parts (the brothers playful clowning with each other and Romeo) work better than others (the over-the-top vulgar dialogue from the investigation team and several bad guys, particularly [[SirSwearsALot Concezio]]), but just like the with the first movie, ''all'' of the humor stops with a key dramatic turn at the end of Act 2 (in this case, [[spoiler:Greenly's death]]).

* RealityEnsues:
** In the first film, the AirVentPassageway the brothers attempt to do during their first official hit goes to shit because, well, the vent isn't built for two grown men with rope, who have a tendency to argue, to pass through.
** Also, by the end of the film, [[spoiler:after the brothers and their dad kill the BigBad]], the public view on the brothers is mixed because, despite cleaning up the streets, some just see them as psychopaths, probably for actions such as [[spoiler:killing a mob boss in a public courtroom]].
** In the sequel, Conner thinks up a plan to kill some criminals smuggling heroin, which involves Romeo ([[spoiler:their new Rocco]]) knocking out a forklift driver with a PistolWhip, hijacking the forklift with the brothers hidden in the forklift's crate, then, having the brothers pop out and shoot the bad guys. However, the forklift driver isn't knocked out by the TapOnTheHead, ending up injured, pissed off, and explaining to the guys that they could've just held him with their guns. Also, Romeo has ''no'' idea how to drive a forklift and the crate the brothers are in is cramped. And then, physics reels its ugly head when Romeo stops the forklift, causing the crate to slide off the forklift's forks.