3.5 stars out of 5
Yes, I attend Joe Hurley’s All-Star Irish Rock Revue every year, hoping Don Fleming will sing “The Bogside Man,” and in the early 90s I was in the Tir na nÓg pub in Trenton at midnight one night when they had a moment of silence for Bobby Sands. But the truth is, I’ve had very little grasp of “The Troubles.” This movie, loosely based on writer/director Kenneth Branagh’s own childhood, helped fill in some gaps. That history looms large in this coming-of-age tale which I liked if didn’t really love.
I did not have a lot of Branagh experience to base expectations on. I’d only seen two previous films he’d directed: Dead Again (1991) and the meh Murder on the Orient Express (2017). I know he used to be with Emma Thompson, and that the dude digs Shakespeare. He knows his way around a motion picture, and having been a kid in Belfast in the late 1960s, was certainly able to summon innocent recollections of the time and place. I just wish he could’ve done it with a tad more skill and depth.
The cast is solid but there aren’t any real standout performances. Jude Hill plays our 9-year-old protagonist Buddy. He looks like a young Conan O’Brien, is quite likable, comes dangerously close to hamming it up but holds it together throughout. I was most impressed with Dame Judi Dench as the grandma. It’s a sweet, down-to-earth portrayal, and the deep lines on her face speak volumes. I guess she’s playing about a decade younger, while trusty Ciarán Hinds is playing a decade older as the charming grandpa.
The movie is shot in black-and-white, though rather than looking sumptuous, reminded me of switching to a B&W filter on Instagram. Oh and there is a ton of Van Morrison on the soundtrack, which definitely fits, but alas his modern-day anti-Covid safety stance somewhat spoiled the listening experience for me. (Maybe Branagh took advantage of a heavy discount on Van the Man’s out-of-flavor catalog?)
Branagh’s screenplay is easy enough to follow, and successfully captures a family caught in societal and interpersonal upheaval. It has a few too many one-liners for a realistic story, leaves a couple of loose ends, and contains a leap of logic or two.
Bottom line: It’s a good small film but in this crowded field of quality end-of-year films, you can wait to sruth, uh, I mean, stream this one.
Jack Silbert, curator