Bloody Sunday
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Movie Reviews of Bloody Sunday
Movie Review: A Film of Tremendous Power and Honesty
Summary: 5 Stars
For many years, 'Bloody Sunday' was to me simply a vague notion, an empty slogan repeated (or so I thought) to rationalise or justify any atrocity, now matter how abhorrent. A little knowledge is indeed a dangerous thing, particularly concerning an event that took place when I was only nine years of age. It was not until I had seen this film, masterfully directed in a chilling documentary style by Paul Greengrass, that I fully comprehended how significant Bloody Sunday actually was - and indeed continues to be - to Irish national identity, Indeed, there can be very little doubt or argument that this single event managed to set back the Irish peace process for at least three decades. In the meantime, both the innocent and guilty alike were pointlessly maimed and killed, and the utter futility of a relentless spiral of violence and retaliation renders any distinction between the culpability of the victims completely irrelevant.
Centrally, this film is about the abuse of power, the unjustifiable and indefensible use of deadly force, and the lengths to which a government will go in stifling peaceful and legitimate dissent and manipulating public opinion to achieve its ends. In this manner, the British Government actually became what it claimed to despise and in so doing undermined the very values that made any society worth protecting in the first place. To the thoughtful and politically aware, these lessons have an unnerving relevance to the events of today.
My initial reaction was that the film had a clear anti-British bias - further reading has, however, revealed that if anything, Mr Greengrass had deliberately (though understandably) soft-pedalled this important aspect presumably to avoid alienating a significant proportion of his potential audience. Had he revealed further factual details - and his portrayal of the British Paras is quite appalling enough as it stands - then I believe have would comprehensively undermined his position. Powerful understatement is the key to the film's devastating effectiveness.
I had previously been led to believe, if only through my conventional British upbringing, that the Irish conflict was simply an endless and brutal game of atrocity and retaliation (the former, of course, invariably committed by foaming-at-the-mouth Republican baby-murderers), effectively becoming a demented game of "he hit me first". If there's one thing this film encouraged me to do - and if this was Mr Greengrass's aim, he succeeded admirably - is to investigate the facts on my own with an open mind, as free of emotion and bias as I could muster, reject previous prejudices instilled in me by well-meaning though misguided parents, and form conclusions of my own.
The facts are these: the British Para Regiment's expectations of the violence they would encounter that day, presumably drummed into their heads by their politically-motivated superiors, became a self-fulfilling prophesy. Free speech and independent thought are hardly encouraged in a military hierarchy, and in this sense the Paras became victims as well, at the hands of their own government. They became willing victims in a sense, determined to even the score for the deaths of their comrades they had witnessed in previous encounters with the Provos, and were keenly encouraged in this pursuit by their superiors who should have known better but did not.
Victims they may have been, but not nearly to the same extent as the dead who were left with no voice. They were either peaceful demonstrators - who were legally petitioning Her Majesty's Government for basic human rights such as freedom of speech and an end to detention without trial - or were simply innocent bystanders. A loose analogy may be drawn with Bloody Sunday and the US Army Reserve's actions at Kent State, Ohio in 1970 - the differences being not only that the body count in Londonderry was much higher, but public opinion was manipulated in the latter case - after a sham inquiry and the medals having been handed out - to victimise the dead a second time and in the process exonerate the guilty.
James Nesbitt's understated performance is masterful, as is Tim Pigott-Smith's as his mirror-image 'toff' British Army commander. The balance between the quiet and dignified outrage of the former and the bloody-minded stupidity of the latter is as heart-rending in the first case as it is infuriatingly convincing in the second. While I will not pretend that this is a pleasant evening's viewing, I will state with full conviction that is a necessity due to its powerful, compelling and honest depiction of the truth - too long obscured by a patina of deliberate bias, public relations spin, a government's appalling abuse of power and its malicious, politically-motivated mendacity.
Movie Review: gripping cinema verite triumph
Summary: 5 Stars
One of the outstanding films of 2002!The events of January 30, 1972 are familiar to most people primarily through the U2 song "Sunday Bloody Sunday." On that fateful, tragic day, a peaceful march for civil rights in Northern Ireland ended in a horrifying massacre when British troops opened fire on the demonstrators. Now, three extraordinary filmmakers - writer/director Paul Greengrass, cinematographer Ivan Strasburg, and editor Clare Douglas - have pooled their talents to give us their view of this watershed incident, one that so enraged Northern Irish Catholics that it ended up strengthening the hand of the IRA and heightening anti-British sentiment in that part of the world.
"Bloody Sunday" is reminiscent of those great films from the 1960's like "The Battle of Algiers" and "Z," wherein the filmmakers successfully recreate a moment of terrifying violence in purely cinematic terms. By employing a handheld camera throughout, Greengrass achieves the kind of reality and immediacy that is only possible through cinema verite style. The camera bobs and weaves, becoming a major character in the drama. Indeed, the film feels very much like a documentary feature recorded at the actual event itself. The filmmakers do an amazing job staging the complex action, managing to view the incident from widely varied vantage points - from the marchers in the crowd, to the policemen standing by for trouble (and fomenting most of it themselves), to the demonstration's organizers, to the troop leaders at command center where the decisions for action are ostensibly being made. The crowd scenes are so well handled in this film that they could easily become a textbook case study for future filmmakers seeking to make movies in a similar vein. Greengrass also heightens the verisimilitude of the work by resisting the temptation to employ a background musical score. Instead, the "soundtrack" of the film is composed of the perpetually ringing telephones that subtly reflect the extraordinary import of the moment.
Because Greengrass' main concern is in getting the physical details of the incident right, less time is, understandably, devoted to character development. Nevertheless, he still manages to bring a few of his key people to life, particularly Ivan Cooper, a member of Parliament who organized the march, a man whose guiding philosophy is that people must have the right to protest peacefully to achieve social justice. Ivan serves as the focal point for the audience, as we come to identify with his commitment, his passion, his level-headedness and his genuine concern for the people he represents. James Nesbitt does a beautiful job conveying the humanity of this Gandhi-like central figure. Greengrass also allows us to see, in telling glimpses, the differing attitudes that prevail among the citizenry of the town as well as among the policemen - both those giving the orders and those executing them - towards what is happening on screen. Indeed, there is nothing less than a superb performance in the entire cast. (In an interesting moment of visual irony, the camera catches a glimpse of a movie marquee with the words "Sunday Bloody Sunday" emblazoned on it - a reference to the famous John Schlesinger film from 1971).
Some people may have trouble with this film on two counts - one ideological and the other technical. There are some who may see the movie as somewhat one-sided, biased and slanted, since clearly the British troops are seen as the Bad Guys in the incident. More serious, perhaps, is the fact that the Irish accents are so thick that those of us unaccustomed and unattuned to them may find a significant portion of the dialogue garbled and incomprehensible. That being the case, it is a blessing that the film's greatest virtues lie in its visuals.
"Bloody Sunday" is an exciting, brilliantly executed tour de force that reminds us of just how powerful cinema verite can be. This is, easily, one of the very best films of recent years.
Movie Review: An Excellent and Unforgettable Experience
Summary: 5 Stars
"Bloody Sunday" is a remarkable and powerful film; a rare breed of film that makes you wonder why such a gem goes so unrecognized by moviegoers. This is such a well-done and important film that has the ability to re-create history with pure authenticity. One of the best things I did last week was purchase this DVD. As soon as I started it, I knew there was no turning back.I had never heard of the event itself (here's my age showing again). Never even learned about it in high school. As a matter of fact, I'm learning there's LOTS of things I never learned in high school, but back to the movie. "Bloody Sunday" is a documentary-like film that re-creates what transpired on Sunday, January 30th, 1972. In a Civil Rights demonstration in Northern Ireland, British troops opened fire on protesters when things were getting hairy, which would eventually lead to 27 wounded and 13 dead. This was a tragedy that struck a major blow to the Civil Rights movement, and to Ireland and Britain as well.
From what I understand, this is still a very controversial topic, even today. Nobody is still 100% sure of what exactly happened. Both sides are still debating and offering their versions of what really went down. I don't know much about the event, as I said in the beginning of this review. What I do know is that this film was done in a very realistic and authentic way, and I believe that what happened on that tragic day might've gone down the way it did in the film, or very close to it. I also believe that the movie shows both sides, not just one.
This film was done entirely hand-held, meaning not once did the filmmakers use a dolly or camera stands. The end result is that it gives it the raw and realistic feel that it needs to be affective. There is no story or plot in the movie. The movie isn't there to tell a single story or show us "characters;" the only goal is to try to educate us all on what happened on January 30th. You never look at the actors as actors, but more like the real people themselves. In fact, when I was watching this, I was very convinced that I wasn't watching a movie, but a real documentary.
The DVD comes equipped with some very nice special features. Those being two commentary tracks and 2 documentary features. That may not sound like a lot, but when you view or hear them, you feel very satisfied. It would've been nice to have a few more extras, but I can't really complain. Nor do I want to.
I really believe the filmmakers when they say that they did not make "Bloody Sunday" to open old wounds. They want to educate us all on what happened and they want us to confront it. Much like when an addict has a problem but he or she won't admit it, the problem will never come to a resolution if we continue to ignore it. I urge every history teacher to make their students watch this movie. I urge EVERYONE I know to give this movie a try. It is a rare and unique gem that takes historical films to a new level that it has never reached before. It's a shame that not many have seen it, but my hope is that more people will see it now since it is available to own and rent on DVD and video. "Bloody Sunday" is an experience you will never forget, and it is an important one you do not want to miss out on. Definitely makes my Top 10 of 2002 list, without question.
Movie Review: Sunday, Bloody Sunday
Summary: 5 Stars
Paul Greengrass, who brought us the powerful and controversial "United 93," made a stunning film about the events that transpired on January 30, 1972 in Londonderry. Greengrass presents the film in a documentary fashion, giving the impression that you are observing the events as they take place. On that day, the Civil Rights Movement, led by MP Ivan Cooper, were determined to march in spite of an official ban on all such gatherings. The Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association fought against many abuses of power on the part of the Northern Ireland administration, but the core issue was the abolition of Operation Demetrius, or internment. Basically, British soldiers could arrest and intern those suspected of being paramilitary groups without charge or trial.
Cooper, who came from a rural Protestant background, wanted only a peaceful march. He urged IRA members not to bring weapons to the march, and advised youth who were harassed by soldiers to "just walk away." Unfortunately, due to high-levels of IRA/British soldier clashes, the "Paras" (1st Battalion of the British Parachute Regiment) were out in force. In addition, despite Cooper's pleas to the contrary, armed "Provos" (members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army) were present. It's still not clear how it began, but shots were fired, and the Paras killed 14 unarmed marchers and wounded several others. The film clearly implies that the British shot first, though that's something that may never be determined with certainty.
Shortly after the events of Bloody Sunday, the British government convened an inquiry known as the Widgery Inquiry. It absolved all the British soldiers of responsibility. In response to political pressure, Tony Blair launched the Saville Inquiry, which as of now has yet to release a report.
In the final part of the film, with Ivan Cooper and other Civil Rights leaders speaking at a press conference after the events, Cooper says: "I'd like to say to the British government- you know what you've done, don't you? You've destroyed the Civil Rights Movement. Tonight, young men will be lining up to join the IRA, and you will reap a whirlwind." His words proved to be prophetic. Had Bloody Sunday not happened, it's likely that the Civil Rights Movement could have achieved what the Good Friday and St. Andrews Agreements are now achieving.
The acting and direction in this movie are top-noptch. Even though the viewer knows what's going to happen, one feels a certain amount of suspense. The interment issue has an eerily contemporary ring to it, and this film shows the dangers of a militarized police force. The two featurettes on the DVD are quite informative as well. In sum, this movie is highly recommended, both for history fans and those who want to use the lessons of history to change the future.
Movie Review: The Gauntlet 5 Stars
Paul Greengrass has delivered the seminal cinematic essay on the origins of Ireland's troubled history. There are precious few heroes in the course of this film, and while many start out with noble intentions, the road to hell is quickly tarmacadamed.This is a gripping film shot in cinema-verite style. My Viet Namese companion was uncertain whether the film was actually a real time documentary. The film aims to lay out what happened that created such a monumental disaster and it leaves you emotionally and horrifically exhausted. This is the dropping of the gauntlet and the levels of betrayal, prejudice, manipulation, ulterior motives undercut and destroy the human fabric. What was begun as a bi-partisan civil rights march ignited a six-county corner of the Irish island into a bonfire that still has not burned out. This was arson of the soul. In the murder of this day bitter enemies would find the justificatiion for more than 30 years of murder, mayhem, gun and drug-running, brutality, rape and desecration. Pandorra's box was opened, and all manner of evil was let loose in a society that could just have easily adopted a peaceful resolution. In the aftermath of the death and destruction of this day, modern terrorism from the IRA through the UVF to the PLO and Osama Bin Laden was born and found its legs to launch attack upon attack on the dignity of life. Governments learned to collude with gangsters. Noble human values were bought, sold , subjugated to one side's polemics or another.
To Greengrass's tremendous credit, he takes no sides. He allows the tragedy to unfold objectively. This film puts the lie to the Irish American sentimentality over the IRA and sets the stage for the rapacious and vicious assault suureptitiously promulgated by Margaret Thatcher. For the purposes of this film, this is the people on the street who by little decisions, squeezes of a trigger and bewilderment at the hell let loose, open floodgates to violence here to fore unimagined. This was the singular event that brought all the snakes back to Ireland, and Greengrass films them in an unblinking fashion. Perhaps no other film, save maybe HARRISON'S FLOWERS, so effectively captures just how horribly man is capable of betraying everything that is good about him. Had we not been thrown out of Eden before this horrible day, then we'd surely have been sent packing after this. Jim Nesbitt leads a remarkable cast. At no point do you ever have the sense that these are actors.
If you are sick to death of the green or orange sweater brigades who sloganize terror and murder, this is the film for you. If you are given to marching for one side or another, this film states quite clearly, God forgive you.