Belfast

source: Belfast

The trouble with hearing that a film is a "shoo-in" Oscar film is that I go in with expectations and, sometimes, there is no way the film can live up to the expectations that I have for it. Such is the case with the new film Written and Directed by Kenneth Branagh, his personal remembrance BELFAST. Professionally made, with a strong cast and some decent dialogue, BELFAST tells the tale of a young boy growing up in Ireland when "the troubles" (the Irish Civil War between Protestants and Catholics of the late 1960's) erupts and the family must turn against friends and neighbors and make the difficult decision as to what side of the conflict they should be one - and whether they should stay in Ireland or move to England. We see this world through the eyes of 9 year old Buddy (Jude Hill). Consequently, we only gets bit and pieces of the story as he starts to understand what is going on. And that is part of the problem with this film. We receive the information in bits and pieces on the level of a child. And the premise just doesn't work, for his parents and grandparents constantly attempt to shield the child from the goings-on in the world (and thus shield the audience). Branagh's script is underwritten and slight - but he turns it over to some tremendous performers who elevate it to something better than it is. Veteran actors Dame Judi Dench and Ciaran Hinds are fine comic relief in this film as the Grandparents who are wise and seeing that the world that they once knew is changing. These two aging thespians bring a spark to this film, for it is pretty limp otherwise. The conflict between Pa (Jamie Doran - 50 SHADES OF GREY) and Ma (Citrione Balfe - OUTLANDER) over the families' reaction to the events outside of their home never really crescendoes with any power. Again, I blame the writing. The conflict between these two is just not interesting enough. So, if I don't blame the writing, I'll blame the Directing - which is also by Branagh. Balfe is being touted as a Best Actress Oscar contender, and I can see how she might get one, as she does have "the Oscar Speech", but there is not much more to recommend here. This film is professionally done and acted well enough - there just needed to be more "there" there. Letter Grade B- 6 Stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)

I personally fit in with the timeline if not quite the geography of this film, being about the same age as young Jude Hill's Buddy character in the late 1960's when the film is set, even if the Glasgow in which I grew up is a city with strong links, especially the sectarian divide, to the Belfast depicted here. The action is set for the most part in a typical Belfast street just at the outbreak of the Troubles, when as ever, religion reared its, can I say ugly head to separate and divide a neighbourhood where until then Catholics and Protestants had co-existed relatively contentedly. In particular we see what transpired through the eyes of the child Buddy (whoever called their child Buddy back in those days?) presumably Branagh's younger self, as we observe at close quarters the dynamics of his immediate family. His da' is Jamie Dornan, a spendthrift who works away to try pay off the back taxes he owes, Ma is Caitriona Balfe who holds the family together especially when her husband's away, his Blarney-loving old Pop of a grandfather is played by Ciaran Hinds and of course the great inevitable in any Branagh film, Judi Dench naturally gets a part as the old "Away with you!" granny. I can't think why Branagh shot the film in black and white as certainly my own childhood memories weren't devoid of colour unless he's connecting the action to the old TV footage of the times in the days before colour television. It's certainly well-shot and captures the era well with its meticulous interior set design, streets, cars and fashions, right down to the identifiable contemporary toys the kids all get for Christmas. However, my anticipation that Branagh would be unable to take us through his back pages without lapsing into sentimentality proved prophetic as he uneasily mixes humour and family melodrama with the rancorous violence of the times. So we see the kid Jude pursue the bright young girl in his class like it was an Irish version of "The Wonder Years" and bond with his old grandad who naturally has a twinkle in his eye and many a silver-tongued anecdote to pass onto the adoring boy. The boy himself is naturally able to hold adult conversations with both his Da and old Pop when it suits him and otherwise act the child when led by an older teenage girl into petty crime and his pursuit of his Catholic schoolgirl crush. Naturally the Troubles come a calling with Da in the thick of it, his plight rather obviously paired off with a clip of Gary Cooper in "High Noon" which is followed soon afterwards by Dornan belting out the classic Irish showband hit "Everlasting Love" to his darlin' wife as they edge towards deciding whether to stay or go to England where he has good job prospects. For me this was the problem with the film throughout as it swung too often and too much between seriousness and mawkishness. No doubt Branagh would say life's like that but I somehow think he's doing his countrymen and women something of a disservice with his pat depictions of characters and situations here. There's good use made of the Belfast Bard Van Morrison's music throughout the film, even if stupid old Van has got completely the wrong end of the stick about the Corona Virus in the last year or two. I do appreciate that the older we all get, the easier it is to look back on our childhoods, no matter how poor or troubled, with fond, rose-tinted glasses. Branagh the director however doesn't distance himself enough from his subject matter and here makes a film I couldn't but should have been able to relate to. This film should have been more like a postcard from the edge rather than a full-blown Valentine Card to his memories. To quote another song of the period maybe Branagh thinks that even the bad times are good, but more often I would contend bad is just plain bad.

"If they can't hear you, then they're not listening." Kenneth Branaugh's Belfast is an autobiographical account from his childhood. It depicts a story about a young boy and his working class family experiencing the tumultuous late 1960s in the hometown of Belfast. I'm going to say it, I've never been taken away by Branaugh's direction in the past. He's a great actor and all, but when it comes to filmmaking, everything I've seen from him has either just been okay or disappointed. Maybe it's because he's never made something as personal as this. Though I don't think it's as wonderful as everyone makes it out to be, I did find myself enjoying Belfast. It manages to create a story centered around family and what it feels like to be a child growing up in a place that's dear to you. With the story being almost auto-biographical, you see the world as Branaugh did. It's a fun and lovely story, even if it touches on heavier subjects like loss and riots. I found the screenplay to be written well. Honestly, this movie could very well be considered a comedy. It's full of humor and light. Still, it can play out a bit melodramatic, especially the end. The ending for me was a little abrupt. I was told there was going to be a scene full of emotion to make everyone cry, but that moment passed and it was the end. I'm glad it ended on that note instead of Branaugh's original ending which had a documentary sort of thing going on and him returning to Belfast. Luckily we have editors to cut things out. What made the movie, at least for me, were the performances. With the likes of Caitriona Balfe, Jamie Dornan, Judi Dench, and Ciarán Hinds you're in for some great acting. Dench and Hinds have smaller performances than the others but play the perfect grandparents you'd want. Dornan, and though we've known he's a better actor than his work in the 50 Shades series, is great and has a lot of fun with his more serious role that does get to have some fun. The absolute best comes from Balfe. She's the best part of the whole movie. For me, she was that part that made the movie most emotionally gripping. And then there's Jude Hill who is the only lead. He may be whiny and that irritating kid sometimes, but he sees the world as a new adventure everyday which is always pleasant to watch. As his first major role and at such a young age, I believe he did a good job. Branaugh set out to make a movie that would possibly win him awards and be the crowd pleaser of the year. Personally, I don't think his direction was all that amazing. He does a good job, but it felt like we've seen variations of the movie already and it was easy to know everything to come. As stylistic as he may try to make it out to be, the only stylish thing is the black-and-white cinematography and all the movies and stage performances are shown in color. I don't think everything he did works (the first couple minutes of the movie did not start out so great), but he did make a solid movie in the end. Belfast is a heartfelt watch and has great performances and good writing, but I ended wanting more out of it. I do think this will go well with audiences and critics, some calling it the best of the year. It comes out in a couple weeks and is bound to win some Oscars, so check it out if you'd like.

A film that reminds you of the great moments in Lady Bird and JoJo Rabbit, with a coming of age arc at the center of a movie about what "home" means. But it doesn't quite live up to either story overall. Belfast is a well done film however, it also may be the years most overrated. 7.2/10.

"Go. Go now. Don't look back. I love you, son." Granny (Judi Dench) You can complain that Kenneth Branagh his filtered his 9-year-old Buddy (Jude Hill) through his own rose-colored revery of the 1969 bloody ethno-nationalist uprising in Belfast, and you'd be right. However, like all of us remembering, that past is most pleasantly remembered through the lens of loving family struggle that binds. While Branagh doesn't shy away from how the Northern Ireland Troubles between Protestants and Catholics was challenging all families, his endearing portrait of Buddy as a curious and sweet, albeit precocious, school boy for whom the biggest conflicts are figuring out how not to emigrate from Belfast because of the violence and connecting with the elusive little blonde who occupies the top of her class with Buddy. One of the best movies of the year, Belfast gives scant references to Branagh's eventual rise to the top of his filmmaking class and emphasizes the effect a loving family can have on a small-town lad. Especially nostalgic is his interaction with his Granny (Judi Dench) and Pop (Ciaran Hinds), who best represent the benign Belfast world, the one so difficult to leave behind. Branagh brilliantly chooses a sharp black and white for most of the film, as if to say, "Unlike the color opening, my story will be realistic in a cinematic sense that black and white usually represented in mid-20th century films." Adding a bunch of bad-boy Van Morrison tunes is a perfect surround-sound for the contradictions of Buddy's coming of age in a civil war that is both secular and religious. The joy of this film is the 9-year-old's warm, nostalgic remembrance of a war-torn land. Belfast confirms the suspicion that those of us lucky enough to grow up in a loving family can survive war and even coronaviruses and become world-renowned filmmakers. Belfast is one of Kenneth Branagh's best films, and that is saying much.

BELFAST (2021) ***1/2 Jude Hill, Caitriona Balfe, Jamie Dornan, Judi Dench, Ciaran Hinds, Lewis McAskie, Lara McDonnell, Colin Morgan. Kenneth Branagh's semi-autobiographical coming of age story set in his hometown of his native Ireland is shown through the eyes of youngster Hill (a charmer) whose family finds themselves swept up in the sudden strife uprising between the Protestants and Catholics. Shot in nostalgic black and white and peppered with Van Morrison tunes the film is like a warm blanket on a snowy day that transports you effortlessly back in time.

Director Kenneth Branagh returns to his childhood past in Belfast, a black and white memory of the age old struggle between Protestant and Catholic during heightened tension between the two in the late 60s and early 70s known as The Troubles. Branagh and clan left early in a conflict that would go beyond Northern Ireland borders and last 30 years so the title can be a touch deceptive in that it deals more with a family in conflict than present an all encompassing overview of a city and its people under duress that certain places (ex: Dunkirk) evoke. Belfast is mostly seen through the eyes of a child, impressively played by Jude Hill, as he tries to make sense of all the calamity as well as understand the logic of his parents and grandparents. As the parents in crisis Caitriona Balfe and Jamie Dornan share some powerful scenes together while Ciaran Hinds turns in his standard solid work and Judy Dench delivers some touching moments as the grandparents. Branagh's direction is inconsistent though with some scenes flat and near pointless. His mise en scene rings artificial and some of his minor casting has a falseness to it as well. Branagh also shies away from expressing the deep seeded hatred between the two groups in favor of the family dynamic at play and in doing so dilutes the desperation they face. A mediocre nostalgia piece whose title and place in history deserves much deeper examination.

When I watch the Best Picture nominees each year there is always one that exceeds my expectations and one that lets me down monumentally. 'Belfast' is the latter this year. I just could not connect with this movie. I found the black and white added nothing to the film and just made it extremely bland visually. I also found the dialogue very uninspiring. Nothing felt natural and it often felt like it was trying too hard. Thankfully the film isn't overly long. It's 98 minutes and I felt every second of it. If it was anything over two hours I would have been severely struggling. There wasn't a lot I could find to like about this one sadly. Not one I'd recommend. 3/10.

I really loved the black and white cinematography. It reminded me of Alfonso Cuaron's Spanish-language "Roma" (2018). There is something about Black and White film, when done by an expert cinematographer, invokes an idealized romanticism about as past era. Both, Jamie Dornan and Caitriona Balfe, gave a good performance. Unfortunately, the film didn't feel like a film for me. It was reminiscent of an early 1960s family television situational comedy. I was expecting more out of the film. It was an odd mix of late1980s, The Wonder Years and a Western. The little boy (Jude Hill) reminded me of Fred Savage. His love interest in the movie reminded me of Danica McKellar (aka. Winnie Cooper). The teenage girl who brought "Buddy" into the riots and looting reminded me of Jason Hervey (aka Wayne) The Western part of it comes into play with the conflict between "Pa" and the main instigator of the riots. These two men practically have a classic western showdown in the middle of the Belfast street. The background country music just adds to this. I loved the setting and the characters. I love the camera work. I just wished the film went deeper into the political period of that time. The story was too superficial.