Clap Watch: Colin Farrell and The Banshees of Inisherin now lead with 13-minute standing ovation

This is the space to watch. The standing ovation station. The clap-o-meter. This is where we measure and break down the length and vigor of the standing ovations at this year’s film festivals thus far, and we’ve got a major update to this year’s rankings.

While Baz Lurhmann’s Elvis previously held this year’s lead with a 12-minute clap attack at Cannes, the biopic has been unseated over the long weekend by Colin Farrell’s The Banshees Of Inisherin, which received a 13-minute “rapturous” standing ovation at the Venice International Film Festival.

Per Variety’s detailed breakdown of the standing ovation, Farrell “broke tradition” by running through the audience, taking photos and signing autographs, spurring more applause. Apparently, the “love for The Banshees Of Inisherin was so intense, with the crowd leaping to its feet with such passion” that the standing ovation started to spill over into the premiere of Olivia Wilde’s Don’t Worry Darling, forcing the ushers to hustle people out of the theater.

A tale of the vigors of male friendship, Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees Of Inisherin stars Farrell and Brendan Gleeson as two lifelong pals living on the fictional island of Inisherin in 1923. When one of them suddenly ends the friendship, the small town is left reeling from the repercussions.

“I’m glad to see male friendship as something valuable at the moment when the readjustment of everyone’s relationships with everybody is under reconsideration,” Gleeson said in Venice. “The valuing of male friendship against a bromance to me is very deep and pertinent right now.”

With its ovation, The Banshees Of Inisherin holds a strong lead over other Venice offerings. Todd Field’s TÁR received a 6-minute ovation (and wildly positive reviews), followed by Luca Guadingino’s Bones And All earning a whopping 8.5 minutes. Toward the bottom lies Wilde’s Don’t Worry Darling, whose applause lasted for four minutes, mired by the tension between the director and star Florence Pugh. Notably, Darren Aronofsky’s The Whale received a 6-minute standing ovation, with a teary-eyed Brendan Fraser leading headlines.

The Banshees Of Inisherin arrives in theaters on October 21.