Irish Movie Listing
I've always loved Irish history and culture - on our trips to Ireland we've enjoyed seeing the beautiful lands which served as backdrops to these fine movies. Of course, we had to dodge the many fake tourist traps along the way! "The Field" pub. "The Quiet Man" Inn. Ah well ...Please feel free to Contact Lisa if you have changes or additions! I'd love to get reviews on movies I haven't been able to track down yet.
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Lisa's Picks
I really love any movie about an Irish subject or filmed in that beautiful country, but here are some of my favorites.
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The Field (1991) Directed by Jim Sheridan, this story has Richard Harris as a stubborn farmer fighting to keep his land from "The American", Tom Berringer. The farmer's son is played by Sean Bean, who became famous playing Boromir in Lord of the Rings. Adapted from a play, there is a lot of interpersonal drama - nobody is 'good' or 'bad'. It contains a lot of comment on the famine. It's set in dark hills by the water: Leenane in the northwest of Galway, at the head of Killary Harbour. Even the homes are gritty and earthy. A true classic. |
Gangs Of New York: 2002. It's not really an Irish film, but all the characters are Irish, so you can consider it. Starring Daniel Dey Lewis, Leonardo Di Caprio, Liam Neeson, the tale focusses on the conflicts in New York City in the late 1800s. Irish were being shipped off to the Civil War daily. The "native Irish" were resentful of the incoming "immigrant Irish" who were fleeing the effects of the famine. The tensions led to riots.
Ryan's Daughter - 1970, 176m. Starring Robert Mitchum and Sarah Miles, this story of love and passion was directed by David Lean. It's a long tale about a young woman growing up, and choosing between a solid schoolmaster and an energetic young English soldier. Being Northern Ireland, few villagers approve of the English. Unlike most of the other movies in this list, the people are harsh and cruel, teasing the local cripple mercilessly. The father, Ryan, appears loving and loyal but has secrets of his own. The town is rough and dirty, the ocean incredibly powerful and destructive.
It was filmed mainly on the Dingle peninsula in Kerry (not QUITE Northern Ireland). The village of "Kirrary" was actually an area behind the village of Carhoo in Dunquin. Only a street and the famous schoolhouse remain.
The Snapper: 1993. The classic "Irish" movie - Colm Meaney and a fatherless child. Colm is the father of six children in a grimy Dublin suburb, squashed into a tiny house which itself is squashed in with other houses in a row. The oldest daughter, 19, is pregnant and refuses to name the father (in Irish movie tradition). She continues to go out drinking every night with friends, dancing at bars until the bitter end. Good 'real life' view of the common life in Dublin, even if the scenes of a pregnant woman drinking heavily, Colm swearing at the children (another Irish movie tradition?), and especially the lack of 'judgement against' the 'father' are disturbing.
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Irish Movie Main Listing
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