Ultimately unsatisfying

Rating: 5/10 (23 August 2006)

I must say that this film should have aroused some emotional response in me at some level. Unfortunately, it did not. Throughout, it fails to establish the characters as people you care about and the climax of the film with the episode between the brothers ought to be very moving. Because no proper relationship is established between them throughout the film, the ending leaves the audience feeling nothing. Far too much time was spent on showing the brutality of the 'Black and Tans'. We quickly get the message that they were violent, abusive thugs within the first twenty minutes. The rest of the time could have been more usefully spent on developing character and focussing on the far more interesting premise of the division of opinion and consequent violence between the Irish themselves as a result of the treaty to form the Free State. Instead, we get an hour and a half of rabid, screaming thuggery from the British and about half an hour to look at a vast and far reaching aspect of Irish history in the fight that pits brother against brother. A conflict of such bitter brutality needs to be shown in its full horror and I'm afraid that the deaths looked more like something from a village hall play in the way that they were sanitised. (Not a drop of blood from anyone who is shot!). This could have been a wonderful film, the cast, authenticity of locations etc... seemed very good. Unfortunately, I felt that it was oddly cold and lacking in emotional involvement. It added nothing to my knowledge of Irish history of the period. I am not an apologist for British behaviour in Ireland over the centuries. I am the son of Irish migrants and was born/brought up in England. I do however feel that the time spent on showing how villainous the British were was way out of proportion and overshadowed what could have been a story of great courage and bravery played out against the odds.