The St. Patrick’s Day season brings celebrations of Irish history, identity and culture front and center to the United States.
For those interested in examining a broader view of Irish culture and filmmaking, here are The Eagle’s picks to check out!
“The Wind That Shakes the Barley” (2006)
Directed by acclaimed English director Ken Loach, “The Wind That Shakes the Barley” sees two brothers, Damien (Cillian Murphy) and Teddy O’Donovan (Pádraic Delaney), as they join the Irish Republican Army during the Irish War of Independence and the troubles which ensue.
Loach would go on to win the 2006 Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival for this movie, an honor he would also receive ten years later with “I, Daniel Blake” (2016).
Murphy and the rest of the cast are at the top of their craft in his film. It is not always an easy watch due to the bleakness and brevity of violence, but it is a movie that sticks with viewers. This film is an essential watch for anyone interested not only in Irish history, but in drama more broadly.
“The Wind That Shakes the Barley” is available to stream on Plex.
“Hunger” (2008)
From legendary British director, Steve McQueen, “Hunger” is a deeply personal look at the life of Bobby Sands and the story of the 1981 hunger strikes in the Maze Prison. Michael Fassbender’s portrayal of Sands shows the Troubles in a poetic, human light, enduring the shock of the Dirty Protests and violence from British police forces. Liam Cunningham also delivers a stellar performance as Father Dominic Moran.
The highlight of the film is the unbroken 17-minute shot between Sands and Fr. Moran in which the film’s politics and story reach a climax.
Like “The Wind That Shakes the Barley,” this is not a film for the faint of heart, but for anyone who wants to know more about Irish history, it is an invaluable viewing. McQueen would win the Camera d’Or for debut filmmakers at Cannes and later the Best Picture Oscar for “12 Years A Slave” (2013).
“Hunger” is available to stream with AMC+.
“Fréwaka” (2024)
“Fréwaka” made history in 2024 for being the first horror film entirely in the Irish language. Aislinn Clarke’s film is an exploration of the language.
The story follows a care worker named Shoo after she was sent to a remote village to care for an elderly woman named Peig, who suffers from agoraphobia. The folk horror elements of Aster’s “Midsommar” (2019) and the bruteing of the cinematography of Eggers’s “TheVVitch” (2015) shine similarly here.
“Fréwaka” is available to stream with AMC+.
“The Commitments” (1991)
Based on a novel by author and screenwriter Roddy Doyle, “The Commitments” centers around Jimmy Rabbitte as he pulls together a soul band in his working-class hometown of Barrytown.
First and foremost, this is just a fun film. Musically-based, humorous and great at capturing attention, “The Commitments” strikes a nerve with anyone who has wanted to build something out of nothing in whatever circumstance they find themselves in. There is a humanity in this that is only seen through collective hardship.
Fans of films such as Crowe’s “Almost Famous” (2000) and fellow Irish classic John Carney’s “Sing Street” (2016) will enjoy the film, one which shows the trials and tribulations of song and musical performance.
“The Commitments” is available to stream on Peacock, Pluto and Xumo Play.
“That They May Face the Rising Sun” (2023)
Based on a novel by John McGahern, “That They May Face the Rising Sun” is a romance like no other. Viewers follow Joe and Kate, a young couple in the 1980s, as they travel from the megalopolis of London to Joe’s home in a small lake town in County Leitrim.
The film examines the perils of life and love as the minuscule becomes their very world, as the quaint becomes what we ought not to care about but what we need to. Isolated from the big city in the country, the film is a portrait of a young couple who carry the responsibility for making their lives their own.
“That They May Face the Rising Sun” is available to rent or buy on Amazon Prime.
This article was edited by Alfie Pritchard, Jessica Ackerman and Walker Whalen. Copy editing done by Avery Grossman, Ryan Sieve and Ava Stuzin.
