Wrenching drama, not as biased as expected

Rating: 10/10 (12 September 2003)

I could not possibly offer an opinion on this film's accuracy in its depiction of Bloody Sunday. As I'm separated from the events by nationality and age--30th January, 1972 being nearly 11 years before my birth--I have no better idea than anyone else as to what actually happened. I know the death toll, I've read eyewitness accounts, I've studied the history, but that does not necessarily bring me any closer to the truth.
Having gotten the disclaimer out of the way, I thought this movie was brilliant. Paul Greengrass and his remarkable cast pulled together what could have been a disaster in the hands of a lesser moviemaker and turned it into a heart-wrenching, brutal docu-drama. James Nesbitt turned in a fantastic performance as Ivan Cooper. Even if the violence weren't so painful to watch, the film could still deeply affect the viewer simply because Nesbitt is so convincing as he moves from determination (and more than a bit of frustration) to shell-shocked despair.
I disagree with those who say that this film is heavily biased, or--even worse!--IRA propaganda. If there is a bias, it is a slight one. The IRA does not get a positive portrayal. Its sympathizers do, but not the IRA members shown seem just as unbending and unforgiving as some of the British soldiers. For that matter, the stress and confusion the soliders must have been feeling at the time is displayed rather well. Confusing messages and conflicting orders only increase the chaos until bullets are flying everywhere.
The accents were difficult to understand at first, but I got used to them as the movie progressed. (Americans don't get much exposure to British and Irish accents that thick, as the movies that tend to make it over here have either been redubbed for clarity or were shot with American audiences in mind. We're spoiled.) The jerky, handheld camera work increased the confusion of the rioting and atmosphere of 'gritty realism' that Greengrass seemed to want. Stylistically, my only objection is all of the fading to black between scenes. There are places where that tactic works, but it gets tiresome after the first few times. The film was originally shot for television, however, so the fadeouts could be a result of the difficulty in transferring from tv-movie to the big screen.
Overall, I thought this film a heartbreaking vision of actual hellish events, truly depicted as one man saw them. Highly recommended. 10/10