Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006)

4.5/5 stars

If you’re in a good mood, this movie will kill it. The story is about two brothers who find themselves on opposite sides of the evolving war between the Catholic Irish and their English Protestant rulers, kind of like the old stories about brothers who ended up on opposite sides during the American Civil War, except this one includes finger nails being pulled out with pliers.

When I traveled to Ireland in 1999, the question about whether you were Catholic or Protestant was simple: “Are you black or are you white?” I’m thankful now we were able to say were Irish American, and that made us somehow exempt from the violence portrayed in this movie that continues today. Many people I talk to, including myself, weren’t even born when John F. Kennedy was elected president. It seems bizarre that the hate between Catholics and Protestants spilled over into America clear through the 1960s, especially when such bigotry is seen as so backwards now. As Americans, we’re used to hearing about racism and homophobia, not whites hating whites.

Cillian Murphy’s acting makes this movie worth watching. The development of his character and character’s brother into two violently opposed directions is heartbreaking. An incredible film with an emotional intensity that is not let down by a typical Hollywood ending. The methods of the IRA reflect its roots: utterly brutal.