Eight hundred years of oppression, one of the largest diaspora on the planet due to Europe’s most devastating famine and a brutal and bloody struggle for independence which, to this day, still has not been won. That’s a potted history of Ireland in a sentence which calls into question the sense of the famous saying Luck of the Irish…
Fortunately, the saying has nothing to do with the country and its struggles, but instead originates from the American gold rush when Irish immigrants were said to have fared better than others when it came to sifting through the dirt for nuggets of gold.
It’s a trope that still stands firm to this day with online slots like Rainbow Riches being based around the premise of the lucky Irish unearthing gold in the form of prizes. In film thought the luck of the Irish has been better portrayed through the lens of bad luck.
In this article we pay homage to the films that, whilst not quite staying true to the essence of the phrase luck of the Irish, do a much better job of portraying the luck of the Irish.
The Wind That Shakes the Barley
The famous Irish poet Robert Dwyer Joyce wrote the poem The Wind That Shakes the Barley in 1861. It tells the story of a young rebel from County Wexford who leaves his family to fight against British colonial rule in Ireland.
Since its publication it has become synonymous with the Irish fight for freedom and director Ken Loach paid homage to it, naming his 2006 film about two brothers who fight the British during the Irish War for Independence after the poem.
Although deeply unsettling to many viewers, this film ultimately tells the story of the irrepressible Irish spirit.
(This is a hard but rewarding watch.)
Angela’s Ashes
This superb film, which was released in 1999, tells the autobiographical story of Irish author Frank McCourt who was born in Limerick and grew up in extreme poverty in the 1930s. The story shows the viewer how Frank’s family and in particular his Mother Angela, fought through the devastation of the Great Depression to ultimately forge out a life for themselves.
It is sad, it is devastating but it is also a story of hope and eulogy to the spirit and character of Angela.
(Angela’s Ashes is a tragic story interlaced with moments of hope and comedy.)
In the Name of the Father
If Daniel Day Lewis is in a film, it’s usually a good sign that it’s worth watching and that’s certainly the case with this 1993 film. In it Day-Lewis plays the role of Gerry Conlon, a young Irishman from Belfast who was wrongfully convicted of being an IRA bomber in 1974.
The film begins following Conlon as he leaves his native Belfast to escape violence and seek employment in England all the way up to his wrongful incarceration and subsequent attempts to clear his name. Again, the topic covered in this film is not a hopeful one but the message conveyed by the end is undoubtedly one of hope.
(The real life story of a miscarriage of justice.)
The Crying Game
There is no way we could write an article about Irish films without covering this one, regardless of what the topic were to be. The Crying Game, which was released in 1992 explores themes of race, sex, nationality and sexuality amidst the brutal backdrop of The Troubles. It also features one of the most shocking and unexpected twists in movie history which makes it worth watching on its own.
(Watch it for the twist alone!)
My Left Foot
Hope and comedy amidst a backdrop of tragedy that would be enough to sink most people is perhaps the best way to succinctly describe the Irish condition and no film captures that better than My Left Foot. Released in 1989 and starring the superb Daniel Day-Lewis once again, this film tells the autobiographical story of Christy Brown, an Irishman born with cerebral palsy who was only able to consciously control his left foot.
This film will have you laughing, it will have you on the verge of tears but it will also have you celebrating the hope and comedy that are such central parts of the Irish national psyche.
(Daniel Day-Lewis is once again superb in this film.)
