As exciting as "Battle of Algiers"

Rating: 10/10 (18 October 2002)

Terrific movie. It not only depicts the horrific events of 1/30/1972 in Derry, but also gives a glimpse (and only that) of the lives of people in that time and place.
Knowing what happened on Bloody Sunday does not keep one from being pulled into the world of "Bloody Sunday".
Much of the dialogue, at least to this listener, could not be understood. Which, in this case, posed no problems at all--the impact of the movie was not deflected at all by not understanding the specific, commonplace words of the working class characters.
For those interested the inflections and cadences of urban Northern Ireland are difficult for Americans to understand. Added to this is the very rapid and sometimes mumbling delivery of the actors. But anyone who thinks they need to know EXACTLY what lines a certain actor is delivering to understand the story is wrong.
The scenes of combat (or slaughter, if you will) are almost too powerful. The confusion that reigns among the three main groups--the British Army, the Civil Rights marchers and the disaffected, lumpenized youth is very well depicted.