Trinity Film Review

Michael Collins (Neil Jordan, 1996) With a $25m budget, this was one of the most expensive films ever produced in Ireland. Starring Liam Neeson and Alan Rickman as Michael Collins and Eamon DeValera it focuses on the life of Michael Collins after 1916 and through to the Anglo-Irish Treaty negotiations. It won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival and was nominated in two categories at the Academy Awards.

The Wind That Shakes The Barley (Ken Loach, 2006) Winner of the Palme D’Or at the Cannes Film Festival and Best Irish Film at the IFTA’s. It focuses on the Irish War of Independence as two brothers from Cork join the IRA. It received overwhelmingly positive reviews and is still one of the most well known Irish films.

Once (John Carney, 2007) Another film set in Dublin. A musical about a romance between a busker and a flower seller. It is one of two films on this list which went on to be adapted into a stage musical. The lead song “Falling Slowly” won the Academy Award for Best Original Song that year and the soundtrack got a Grammy nomination. It was so successful that the actors even got to reprise their roles in an episode of The Simpsons. The Broadway adaptation of the musical went on to win eight Tony Awards.

Brooklyn (John Crowley, 2015) A staple of Leaving Cert English courses around the country - this drama about the Irish diaspora was nominated for three Academy Awards including Best Picture. Saoirse Ronan is dazzling in her portrayal of Eilis, a young Irish woman who moves to New York. It was based on the novel by acclaimed Irish writer Colm Toibin.

Room (Lenny Abrahamson, 2015) This film about a kidnapped woman and her child who has never seen the outside world was directed by the same director of 2020’s Normal People. The screenplay was penned by Irish author Emma Donoghue who also wrote the novel. This film was also nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards and Brie Larson took home the Best Actress award for her unforgettable performance.

Sing Street (John Carney, 2016). This is my personal favourite Irish film, but that’s not the only reason it earned a spot on this list. With wide critical acclaim and audience reception - it has become one of the most famous Irish independent films and a sort of cult classic. The soundtrack is incredible, with “Up” and “Drive It Like You Stole It” being the standouts. In 2020 it was also adapted into a Broadway musical featuring Brenock O’Connor. It is about a young boy in Dublin in the 1980’s who starts a band to impress an aspiring model.

You might notice while reading that the Irish Film Canon suffers from the same problems the Film Canon in general suffers from. That is the lack of diversity in voices making these films. Every director on this list is a man. There are unfortunately very few films made by Irish women and those that are are not as critically acclaimed and well known as those by their male peers. There isn’t much diversity regarding class backgrounds of directors and screenwriters either. Despite this, films about working class people like The Snapper, My Left Foot and Sing Street have been some of the most successful Irish films.

With successes like The Banshees of Inisherin (Martin McDonagh, 2022) and An Cailín Ciúin (Colm Bairéad, 2022) this year, we can hopefully expect more and more Irish films coming out in the next few years to stand alongside the legendary ones listed here.