Colin Farrell started off with a hiss and a roar as Hollywood's golden boy, oozing talent and plenty of Irish charm mixed with an infectious and insatiable appetite for liquor and ladies. He racked up Tigerland, Minority Report, and The Recruit. Then came Alexander, which nobody emerged from smelling of roses. Miami Vice was a very black mark against his name from which only unpleasantness came.

But Farrell's taken the cinematic bull by the horns in possibly the best role of his career. The film is Martin McDonagh's In Bruges. And Farrell more than lives up to the challenge.

Playwright McDonagh makes his full-length film directorial debut with In Bruges, and if this movie's any indication here's hoping he has a long and prosperous career in the industry.

Irish hit men Ray (Farrell) and Ken (the always excellent Brendan Gleeson) are banished from London to the quaint Belgian city of Bruges to cool their heels and wait for a new assignment when their last job doesn't go according to plan.

Ray hardly hides his disdain for the cobbles and canals of this historic town ("it's a shithole!" he declares early in the piece), while Ken is swept up in the history and picture-perfect beauty of Belgium's most well-preserved medieval city.

While waiting for their foul-mouthed underworld boss, Harry (Ralph Fiennes), to get in touch, Ray is keen to spend his time in the town's drinking establishments, while Ken is all for museums, churches and art galleries. They manage to strike an uneasy balance.

At night, the pair is supposed to stay confined within the walls of their hotel room while awaiting their next assignment, a plan which quickly goes awry. When you add Jimmy, an American dwarf making an art house European movie on location in town, and Chloe, the film's production assistant and purveyor of illicit substances to cast and crew, things are bound to get interesting.

I won't give the plot of the flick away. It's best if you don't know, but however perceptive you are as a moviegoer odds are you aren't going to be able to guess how this one plays out. A refreshing change, actually, from many modern movies.

It's true that gangsters with hearts of gold is a theme that's been touched on before by moviemakers, but In Bruges' laugh out loud hilarity is an asset all of its own. Martin McDonagh's script, no doubt well-honed by his award-winning plays, is clever, dark, gory, sentimental, and packed full of razor-sharp quips.

Colin Farrell is well and truly out of the doldrums with his excellent performance as the angry, tortured, foul-mouthed Ray. He's back on top of his game in fighting form. You wouldn't peg him as a natural comedian, but he's very good with this material. Opposite him, Brendan Gleeson puts in a fine performance and proves a solid partner in crime for Farrell to spark off.

As Harry, Ralph Fiennes certainly doesn't play the posh Englishman you may be accustomed to seeing him as on-screen. His portrayal of the psychopathic, suited and booted gangster boss is a delight to watch.

Smart and absurdly hilarious, In Bruges is an excellent film well worth a watch. I highly recommend.