16 A RT S & E N T E RTAIN M EN T
SIN Vol. 22 Issue 05
Is it Thyme to let go of old Irish stereotypes in film – a look at the ‘Wild Mountain Thyme’ trailer By Mary - Kate Barrett Hollywood has a long history of getting things wrong when portraying Ireland on-screen. From flat stereotypical characters to atrocious accents, films that depict Ireland are almost satirical in their attempts to be authentic. ‘Wild Mountain Thyme’, written and directed by John Patrick Shanley appears to be the latest romantic comedy to cause a stir with its awful representation of Ireland. The movie is set in rural Ireland and follows the romance between Rosemary Muldoon, played by Emily Blunt, and Anthony Reilly, played by Jamie Dornan. When Anthony’s father reveals his reluctance to let his son inherit the farm, a rich, smooth - talking American cousin threatens to woo Rosemary before Anthony works up the wits to prove his real feelings for Rosemary, as well as taking the land. The film has already garnered widespread attention following the release of the initial trailer last week. The trailer trended on Twitter and was heavily criticised by those sharing their reactions, mainly because the movie has all the makings of a bad Irish film. It opens with Failte Ireland worthy shots of scenic cliffs and idyllic green pastures, overlayed with Christopher Walken’s unfortunate attempt at an Irish accent and a dramatic fiddle score. What follows is a baffling series of scenes
that would lead any viewer to believe the film is depicting Ireland in the early 20th century. However, viewers quickly realised this was not the case when Rosemary laments about freezing her eggs, and a skyline of modern - day New York City is shown. Despite the presence of anachronisms such as tartan shawls and terrible sideburns, it seems as though this movie is trying to represent life in modern Ireland. Therein lies the problem with many of these films. In a bid to romanticise the traditional and rural aspects of Ireland, they ignore the increasingly urbanised, multi - cultural reality of the country. As a result, Ireland is presented as rigidly lodged in its past. This longing for Ireland’s romanticised past is likely because the movies
are the product of Irish American immigrants, as is the case with ‘Wild Mountain Thyme’. In an article for The New York Times John Patrick Shanley (the director and writer of the film) describes an upbringing pervaded by Irish influences. His Irish relatives served as inspiration for ‘Outside Mullingar’, the play the film is based on, but he admits that he did not intend to write an honest depiction of their lives, and rather wished to explore the farm his father grew up on as he had always imagined it. “I’d be telling my own truth, using them.” The truth is that films such as these are not concerned with being accurate to modern Ireland, or the experience and identities of those living here. They are inspired by a generational longing for Ireland passed down in tales of the old country. Stories such as ‘Wild Mountain Thyme’ might resonate with the diaspora who were raised on memories of a glorified and inaccessible homeland, but the nostalgia simply feels cheap and disingenuous to those of us that grew up in Ireland. Shanley has shown awareness that this is an imperfect depiction of Ireland, but that doesn’t excuse the inaccuracy of the film. ‘Wild Mountain Thyme’ appears to perpetuate harmful tropes and stereotypes that have been rooted in films about Ireland for decades, joining the ranks of other romcoms such as ‘P.S. I love you’ (2007) and ‘Leap Year’ (2010). One of the primary fail-
ings of these movies is the lack of Irish talent involved. Not only do they rely heavily on American stars doing poor impressions of Irish people, but they are also missing the influence of Irish writers and directors. As a result, the stories lack the nuance required to make them genuine. The claim that American talent is needed to guarantee a film’s success is not only a disservice to Irish artists but is also simply untrue. In recent years movies and series that have relied on Irish talent have performed well, garnering critical and public acclaim. ‘Brooklyn’ (2015), ‘Sing Street’ (2016), ‘The Young Offenders’ (2016, 2018 - ), ‘Derry Girls’ (2018 - ), and ‘Normal People’ (2020) are just a few examples of stories that benefit from celebrating Irish talent, exploring a variety of Irish experiences thus gaining popularity in Ireland as well as abroad. ‘Wild Mountain Thyme’ might be a heartfelt letter from the diaspora that has fallen victim to terrible advertisement, or else it is truly an accidental parody of its genre that shares a scary number of similarities with Foil Arms and Hog’s, A Very Irish Film sketch. If you are willing to give the movie the benefit of the doubt, or simply fancy devising an easy drinking game, (because of course, the Irish are fond of the drink), give it a watch when it is released on 11th December.
Grab your paddleboard – we’re going to ‘Dawson’s Creek’ By Valerie McHugh We all need cheering up at the moment, and for many of us, channelling our boredom and frustration with the world into our Netflix binging sessions is the quickest way to crack a smile on our faces. After a lot of late nights and TV snacks, I have discovered that ‘Dawson’s Creek’ (1998) is everything you didn’t know you needed in your watch list. This heartfelt drama follows 15 – year - old Dawson Leary and his best friends as they begin High School and learn how to deal with more than just quadratic equations. From teenage hormones to unrequited love, Dawson and his companions struggle through their cumbrous teen years in Capeside, Massachusetts; a tiny town with an archetypical small - town mentality. I’d heard of this show before it arrived on Netflix this month, but I had never given it enough of a chance. It’s as old as I am, and I presumed the plot would be a tad bit unrelatable for some of us millennials. Nonetheless, I took a look at the tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes where Sea-
son 1 scored a respectable 73% , also receiving an audience rating of 87%. It’s undeniably a highly rated television series, so I gave it a chance, and it was the best decision I’ve made in weeks. The characters are infectious, the plot easy to follow and the soundtrack has some mega throwbacks that will fill you with a warm fuzziness any day of the week. James Van Der Beek plays charming Dawson Leary, and a young Katie Holmes stars as his confidant partner in crime, Joey Potter. These were break out roles for both actors, with Holmes going on to achieve global stardom in roles such as April Burns in ‘Pieces of April’ (2003) and Rachel Dawes in ‘Batman Begins’ (2005). Both stars have a strong social media following, with Van Der Beek standing at 1 million followers and many of his fans tuning in to watch him on ‘Dancing with The Stars’ in 2019. Both actors along with the other main cast were regularly nominated for various television awards due to their excellent portrayal of relatable characters and their on - screen chemistry. It is the relationships between the friends and their unbreakable loyalty to one another that strikes me most
when watching this series. Like all teenagers, various disagreements test their relationships often leading to a breakdown in communication (and this was before online messaging). It highlights friendship, the classic frenemy bond and the hidden love between two best friends from opposite sides of the creek. Although the show considerably centres around the love triangle of Dawson, Joey and Jen (Michelle Williams), the relationship between Dawson and his best friend Pacey (Joshua Jackson) is nothing short of iconic. Both boys share a brotherly bond, and their moments together on screen are nothing but enjoyable for the viewers to watch.
Their relationship, like other relationships in the show, develops and matures over time as the teenagers grow into adults and leave High School behind. Although the cast are all grown up now, it hasn’t stopped the show gathering a new audience some 23 years after its initial release. After having an original viewing of up to 6.6 million, it now remains the 8th Most Popular TV Show in Ireland on Netflix for November 2020, as well as creeping into the top ten in Canada. ‘Dawson’s Creek’ actress Mary Margaret Humes, who played Dawson’s mother Gail, shared a picture last week of her and on - screen partner John Wesley Shipp (Mitch) at the Toledo Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1999, including the hashtag #foreverfriends. It’s clear that even over 20 years since the show launched, the cast remain close friends which is continuously obvious in their on - screen portrayal of their characters. So, why not give this teen melodrama a go? It will appeal to many audiences and is highly addictive so make sure you don’t have lots of projects piling up before starting it. Trust me, once you start watching it, you won’t be able to stop.
‘My Wife Said You May Want ‘to Marry Me’, a grief and love story by Jason Rosenthal By Sophia Hadef On 3rd March 2017, Amy Krouse Rosenthal wrote an op - ed piece for ‘The New York Times’ “Modern Love” column: ‘You May Want to Marry My Husband’. She died ten days after its publication. A heart - rending, sincere, and original piece on a personal ad, in which a dying wife encouraged her husband to find happiness after her death, to write a new page of his life without her. The column went viral, with more than five million readers worldwide. In ’My Wife Said You May Want ‘to Marry Me’, Jason narrates what arrived next: his respect to Amy’s wish, even while struggling with her loss. Recounting his life before, with and without Amy, he contemplates on love and the pain of watching a beloved one suffer, and the process of healing.
How he and his children, in spite of their deep grief, dealt with it. An emotional journey which offers insights on dying and death and the agonising pain of losing a soulmate, while Jason explains the lessons he learned. As he reflects on Amy’s present to him, a new start to fill his blank space with a new story, Jason details how he continues to praise Amy’s story and her ultimate wish, how he seeks to enjoy every day and live in the moment while aspiring to help others coping with grief. ’My Wife Said You May Want ‘to Marry Me’ is the emotional, and encouraging story of a true love, the result of a marriage stopped too soon, and how a surviving companion finally found a new perspective about life and its joys in the wake of enormous loss. This story was indeed touching at parts but also inspiring. Jason is an excellent writer, and it’s evi-
dent from his book that Amy was creative, with a powerful force, and she was loved by so many. What I admired the most was the fact they chose to live the life they wanted, with a great effort. We all talk about living fully, but are we even trying? ”I am capable of doing many things on my own, but two people can accomplish so much more together and also support each other through life’s ups and downs.” A lot of reviews of this book are calling it too sweet. It is sad to see that some people don’t have the respect for what it is—an intimate perspective on love and loss. No relationship is perfect, but I believe that Jason and Amy’s marriage was close to it, at least they thought it was, and it is essential. ‘My Wife Said You May Want ‘to Marry Me’ is a beautiful tribute to an incredible life and a story of resilience, about writing a new page and moving on
to a new life. The writer Jason mentioned the idea of “family help” many times, and each time I thought it what a good thing to have such an essential circle, because we are not all so lucky. To exist without toxicity, without opposition and with the full support in all our endeavour is something most of us are dreaming to have. I recommend this powerful story to help you to move on if you are suffering and grieving. It’s a light of hope and a strong love letter to living. “Talk with your mate, your children and other loved ones about what you want for them when you are gone. By doing this, you give them liberty to live a full life and eventually find meaning again. There will be so much pain, and they will think of you daily. But they will carry on and make a new future, knowing you gave them permission and even encouragement to do so.”
