In 2023, An Cailín Ciúin (Colm Bairéad) made history as the first Irish film to be nominated for Best International Feature at the Academy Awards. Based on Claire Keegan’s novella Foster (2010), the film is an intimate story of care and connection. This film set the tones for Irish film: even the smallest of stories can be extremely powerful. Next month marks the release of Small Things Like These (Tim Mielants, 2024), adapted from another of Keegan’s novellas. Another short but impactful story, the novella depicts Irish father Bill Furlong’s (Cillian Murphy) moral dilemma as he discovers the abusive treatment of young women in the local convent. Set in 1980’s Wexford, Keegan uses one man’s experience to unpack larger issues for society as a whole.
Over the last few years Irish film has reached new levels of critical acclaim. Ireland received fourteen nominations at the 2023 Academy Awards, nine of which were for The Banshees of Inisherin (Martin McDonagh, 2022). Banshees is an undoubtedly unique story with McDonagh’s particular brand of dark comedy meeting the absurdity of a Samuel Beckett play. The black tragi-comedy follows the abrupt end of a friendship. The film is intended as an allegory for the divisions between friends and family during the Irish Civil War. Whether you found the film’s satire effective or not, the attention the film gave the Irish film industry has had a monumental impact. The film’s success alerted the world to the treasure trove that Irish stories could be. Now that we have an audience larger than ever, we have the freedom to decide what kind of stories we want to share on screen.
Looking back in history, Hollywood shaped a certain idea of what an Irish story looked like. John Ford’s The Quiet Man (John Ford, 1952) is a prime example of Hollywood’s fascination with presenting Ireland on screen as a romantic but primitive Eden for the tourist. When the American lead embraces the simple life and falls in love with a beautiful Irish girl he will find his happy ending. The 2000s rom-com era returned to these tropes of a flattened representation of Ireland changing the lives of disillusioned Americans. Films like P. S I Love You (Richard LaGravanese, 2007) and Leap Year (Anand Tucker, 2010) tell stories of American women venturing to Ireland and falling head over heels for Irish men.
Both films feature egregious attempts at the accent and a lack of Irish actors. Ireland is merely a backdrop in these stories. With beautiful rolling hills and undeveloped background characters, Hollywood uses the scenery of the country while neglecting to explore the realities of life here or the stories of the Irish rather than the displaced Americans. At the time there wasn’t enough attention on Irish cinema to counter Hollywood’s ideas of an Irish story.
With the success of An Cailin Ciúin and more recently, Kneecap (Rich Peppiatt, 2024), Irish-language films have taken on new life. An Cailin Ciúin is a sensitive portrayal of attention and care. Kneecap is an irreverent tale of sex, drugs, and violence. The only similarity between these two films is their use of the Irish language. However, both are astute depictions of what it means to live in this country. The contrast between these films indicates how Irish cinema has evolved. The Irish language and the notion of being Irish mean very different things to different people and now more of these stories are getting on-screen attention.
Small Things like These explores the treatment of women in the Magdalene Laundries.
Until the mid-90’s, when the discovery of a mass grave led to investigations into these institutions, women were sent to these laundries to repent for breaking the moral codes of the Catholic Church. Many were subject to intense abuse. The main character in Small Things Like These feels particularly affected by the discovery of the abuse due to his past. Many people were aware of these institutions which profited from forced labour. However, people believed that as long as the situation was not discussed then these religious orders were doing the right thing for the preservation of a pure and Christian Ireland. The silence around the Magdalene laundries was the silence of a country that failed many women and children.
Now that we have the opportunity to share more Irish stories, we have an obligation to share the truth, even if it taints the romanticised images of rolling hills and ever-pouring pints. Small Things like These will hopefully revive the conversation around what happened to these women at the hands of religious institutions. With Enda Walsh adapting the screenplay and a talented cast behind the project, I trust this film to pay justice to the situation and remind the world that we must tell national stories that explore the country’s darkness as well as its hopes. Ireland may be small but its voice has been given a stage and I hope that with a story as heart-wrenching and important as Small Things like These, the world will listen.
