When I first saw The Guard on the LA Film Fest lineup, I was intrigued by the cast – Brendan Gleeson and Don Cheadle – but not totally convinced by the premise of an Irish cop teaming with a black FBI agent on an international drug trafficking case, which seemed to me could get In the Heat of the Night-style heavy-handed in a real hurry. But then I saw this trailer for it, and immediately rushed to make room for it on my schedule, because this trailer looks fantastic. And according to Twitch’s Todd Brown, it’s actually even better than the trailer suggests.

Writer/director John Michael McDonagh (making his feature debut as director) is brother to Martin McDonagh, who teamed with Gleeson and Colin Farrell on the underrated dark comedy In Bruges, and The Guard definitely looks like it has some of the same genes, maybe with even a touch of a less over-the-top Hot Fuzz in there. Add in the admittedly precious conceit of overlaying the trailer with a spaghetti western feel, and I’m charmed and totally on board.

The Guard plays the LA Film Festival on the 22nd and 24th (it already played Sundance in January), and will be released by Sony Pictures Classics in the US at a yet-to-be-determined date. It opens July 8th in the UK.

Take a look under the seats to see the trailer.