Belfast

Movie Name: Belfast
Year of Release: 2021
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Starring: Caitriona Balfe, Jude Hill, Jamie Dornan, Judi Dench, Ciaran Hinds, Josie Walker, Colin Morgan, Lewis McAskie, Nessa Eriksson, Frankie Hastings, Charlie Barnard, Michael Maloney, Lara McDonnell, Vanessa Ifediora
Genre: Drama
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7
Watch it on Amazon Prime

Synopsis and Review

Multi-talented actor/writer/producer and director Kenneth Branagh followed his critically derided "Artemis Fowl" (which premiered on Disney +), with what has turned out one of his more personal and celebrated features. The film based on his life, focuses its attention on a working class family living in Belfast, Northern Ireland, during the late 1960s. The central character is Buddy, a 9 year old who is witnessing his world change right in front of his eyes, with violence and riots erupting, all the while his family is also being challenged, with his father wanting to find a better life for themselves in England, while his grandparents, and his mom are more intent on staying where they are. Things eventually come to an halt, when they realize they're no longer safe in Belfast, with Buddy's father being accosted and the violence that shows no signs of stopping. With the grandfather in the hospital, they all have difficult decisions to make.

One thing that has always been interesting in Kenneth Branagh's career as a film director, is how it is lined with titles which showcase his polished perspective of scripts he tackles, including for instance "Dead Again", "Thor" and "Cinderella", all of which are titles that while not entirely successful, still demonstrate his ability to tell a story. However, his career is also peppered with projects where he clearly has more of an emotional investment and a personal connection with the material, which include his Shakespeare adaptations, namely "Henry V", "Hamlet", but also other material that is closer to his sense of humor, such as "Peter's Friends" and even "A Midwinter's Tale". "Belfast", aside from the short "Listening" which he also directed in 2003, is his first original feature screenplay which arrives to the screen. And it is also a personal narrative since it is an autobiographical look at this childhood and his family life. It's a film that is ripe with feeling and sentiment, but never cheaply or emotionally gratuitously staged. The film meagerly illustrates these main characters, but manages to perfectly capture the love and complicity that exists within this family. For all the noise and violence that it captures, the film is all the more successful in its more intimate moments, when young Buddy is understanding the legacy of his family, the love of his grandparents, and when he confronts his own parents with the fear of the unknown, of what lies ahead. It's a visually compelling and arresting film, made all the more successful for the cast that Kenneth Branagh has selected. Caitriona Balfe, Jamie Dornan, Judi Dench, Ciaran Hinds and newcomer Jude Hill, are all fantastic, bringing these characters vividly to life, with heart, humor and also pain, for those who pass, and for themselves and for the promise of an unfulfilled life in Belfast, that they sadly have to set aside. The production team is also a fantastic one, featuring the beautiful cinematography from Haris Zambarloukos, score from Van Morrison and production design from Jim Clay. It's a nice celebration of the director's childhood, and a solid film worth watching.