The Wind That Shakes The Barley dir. Ken Loach
Very powerful depiction of the Irish Uprising in 1920, and the birth of the IRA.
Despite winning a Palme D’Or, Ken Loach’s film was widely criticised in the British press because of its perceived anti-British viewpoint. It’s true that the ‘Black and Tans’ are depicted as violent, out-of-control psychopaths, but if you believe some of the testimony of the time, that’s not too far from the truth. I can’t say how accurate it is, because I wasn’t there and don’t know anybody who was. However, it’s also true that the IRA are not depicted as angels either. You see the full horror of a guerilla war which turns into a civil war, dividing communities and families.
The story centres on Damien, a young man from Cork who is about to travel to London to become a doctor. After incidents with the Black and Tans in his village, he is torn between staying and helping with the resistance, or leaving and pursuing a peaceful and useful life abroad. He tries to stay out of the fight, but after a pivotal scene, he is drawn in against his will, and he can’t get out again.
I think that Ken Loach tried to understand, through Damien’s story, how people who are basically gentle, peaceful, good people can be pushed by complicated circumstances into doing terrible things which they can’t even forgive themselves for. It’s definitely not an attempt to excuse such behaviour — just to try to understand it a little.
It’s not an easy film to watch, but very worthwhile. It’s quite unremittingly bleak, and there are brutal scenes of violence that I had to look away from. There are some great, natural performances, particularly from Cillian Murphy, who seems to have been in every film we’ve watched recently.
