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| Jude Hill is the boy running joyously brandishing a toy sword and a garbage can lid for a shield on this delightful poster for Kenneth Branagh's Belfast |
Buddy is a 9 year-old boy in Belfast, Northern Ireland, whose friendships, family bonds and local anchoring comes into question, as the Troubles bring violence, hatred and chaos into his otherwise loving if hard-pressed family's lives.
Belfast is written and directed by Irish master filmmaker Kenneth Branagh (Henry V (1989)), who draws on his own Belfast upbringing and memories for the story. It is his 18th feature.
The cinematography, which mixes colors, - used in short, bookend style present day sequences and for pieces of escapist fiction enjoyed by the characters in the cinema and on the stage, (highlighting the magical power of imagination, fantasy and joyful escapism), - and black and white, by Haris Zambarloukous (Sleuth (2007)), is gorgeous: The film opens with fabulous snapshots of present-day Belfast, an impressive modern metropolis with awesome art landmarks and industry, and we then descend into the city as it was some 50 odd years earlier, a seemingly small-townish harmony, but one that is immediately broken by the advent of the Troubles. It is a powerful drop into this reality, and through the anchor of Jude Hill's (Magpie Murders (2022, TV-series)) vivacious Buddy we are at once aligned with him and his family's situation in Belfast.
Hill is impossible not to fall in love with and seems a natural actor. The film has terrific performances across the board: Caitriona Balfe (Money Monster (2016)) and Jamie Dornan (New Worlds (2014, miniseries)) are a ravishing couple and they have great chemistry. He looks like a leader but is in fact a loving father and husband who lets his wife have the last word, (an arrangement that's seen more often than not both in the past and present it seems.) The way they are both incomplete without the other is just a beautiful thing to behold. Their scenes of affection and deep love in the face of trials and hardships are mirrored in the grandparents played by Ciarán Hinds (Munich (2005)) and Judi Dench (Detective (1964, TV-series)), who is again amazing. Van Morrison (Lamb (1985)), also a Belfast native, has made a soulful and deeply moving score for the film, which has warmth, humor and nostalgia yet still maintains a fresh and potent immediacy.
Branagh may idealize here and exaggerate there, but only in small measures, and it is clear that these are essentially treasured boyhood memories, - a source that is always a matter of perspective, - which have been carefully elaborated into a feature film. There have been many films about the Troubles, but this is one boy's experience of the time and his community and family during that time. Belfast is a deeply poignant and encouraging piece of cinema and tightly edited, tremendous storytelling that deserves to be seen far and wide.
Related posts:
Kenneth Branagh: Tenet (2020) - Nolan blows smoke up your ass (actor)
Murder on the Orient Express (2017) - Branagh's star-studded Christie match is auspicious (director/co-star)
2017 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
Dunkirk (2017) - Nolan champions cinema with masterful war movie (actor)
My Week with Marilyn (2011) or, The Prince, the Showgirl and Me (actor)
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002) - Potter and Co. return for handsome if overlong first sequel (co-star)
Celebrity (1998) or, Stars in New York (actor)
Watch a trailer for the film here
Cost: 10-15 mil. $
Box office: 44.9 mil. $ and counting
= Box office success, possibly even a big hit (has returned between 2.99-4.49 times its cost)
[Belfast premiered 2 September (Telluride Film Festival) and runs 97 minutes. Branagh began work on the film in March 2020. Shooting took 7 weeks from September - October 2020 in Belfast, Northern Ireland and in London, England. The film opened #7 to a 1.7 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it declined from there, grossing 9.2 mil. $ to date. The film's biggest market has been the UK with 19.9 mil. $ to date, especially from Ireland; North America the 2nd biggest, and then Australia with 3.2 mil. $ to date. The film has 1 market left to open in: Kazakhstan on 31 March. It was nominated for 7 Oscars, winning one, for Best Original Screenplay. It lost Best Picture to CODA, Supporting Actor (Hinds) to Troy Kotsur for CODA, Supporting Actress (Dench) to Ariana DeBose for West Side Story, Director to Jane Campion for The Power of the Dog, Sound to Dune and Original Song (Down to Joy by Van Morrison) to No Time to Die by Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell from No Time to Die. It won 1/6 BAFTAs, an AFI award, was nominated for 11 British Independent Film awards, won 1/7 Golden Globe nominations, 2 National Board of Review awards and many other honors. Branagh returned with Death on the Nile (2022). Dornan returned in The Tourist (2022, TV-series) and theatrically is set to return in Heart of Stone; Balfe in Outlander (2014-22) and theatrically yet to be announced. Belfast is certified fresh at 86 % with a 7.90/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]
What do you think of Belfast?
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