Reviews
WHAT a year it has been for entertainment. The best film, CD, gig,
theatre and book reviews that have packed our pages throughout 2006. Happy
New Year!
Films
 The
Wind That Shakes The Barley (15)
Already adorned by the Palme d’Or The Wind That Shakes The Barley
carries a great weight of expectation. Not that winning the top prize
in Cannes is a guarantee of either quality or comprehensibility of course.
Many previous winners have had what we shall euphemistically call a “specialist
audience” ie. three North London art teachers.
However, in this case, the Cannes jury got it spot on. Ken Loach’s
film — from Paul Laverty’s excellent screenplay — is
a moving and well-acted piece that weaves political history and family
drama to very powerful effect.
The focus is the build up — and fall-out — to the Anglo-Irish
Treaty of 1921. Loach’s film begins a year or so before with the
conversion of Damien (Cillian Murphy) from young, idealistic doctor to
member of the Irish Republican Army. While initially determined to ignore
the situation and take up a post in London, the death of a friend at the
hands of the Black and Tans and a violent stand-off between train staff
and the British military change Damien’s mind. He swears allegiance
alongside his brother Teddy (Padraic Delaney) and joins the battle.
The beauty of Loach’s film is that while the bigger picture is,
inevitably, told in broad strokes there’s more subtlety here than
in his previous films. As the film progresses the expected shades of black
and white reveal themselves to be a wide ranging grey scale. The image
of what Teddy was — a doctor sworn to help people — and what
he has become — a killer at times forced to execute his own friends
— and the resulting inner turmoil are made clear but not to the
force-feeding stage you might associate with the director.
This pattern is developed more as the film progresses and the Republicans
find themselves split by the Treaty. While some, including Teddy, support
it wholeheartedly others, including Damien, are questioning its limitations.
If it only gives partial economic independence and still demands loyalty
to the British crown what were they fighting for? From fighting side-by-side,
the seeds are thus sown for civil war.
Performances are excellent particularly Murphy and Liam Cunningham as
Dan, the veteran Republican who mentors Damien through the struggle. A
fine, intelligent and important film whatever your nationality.
Neil Davey
The Departed (15)
FINALLY Leonardo Di Caprio shone in a Scorsese film; this was the kind
of performance that the director has been trying to pull from the actor
since they started working together on Gangs of New York.
The Departed visits the same gangster terrain of Goodfellas but this time
he trades the Italian-America mafia for Boston-Irish street urchins. It’s
a stunning cast and Jack Nicholson shines as ruthless and wisecracking
underworld boss Costello. His nemesis is Queenan a police captain played
by Martin Sheen — another old hand doing a star turn. Both men have
a mole in their ranks in the form of Costigan (Di Caprio) and Sullivan
(Matt Damon). The film is a battle of wills, a classic tale of good and
evil that will have you on the edge of your seat with more twists and
turns than a roller coaster.
It’s undoubtedly Di Caprio’s best performance to date. He
plays a genuinely-damaged young man trying to make the right choices in
a tough Irish family and neighbourhood. He looks tortured and browbeaten
throughout and is completely believable in the role unlike his work in
The Aviator and Gangs Of New York.
It’s a magnificent ensemble cast featuring stellar performances
from Mark Wahlberg who proves once again why he is a much better actor
than singer. Ray Winstone and David O’Hara are excellent as Costello’s
henchman.
This is undoubtedly Scorsese’s best work in over a decade.
Richard Purden
The Devil Wears Prada (PG)
THE Devil Wears Prada is one of those films that you’ll find enormously
enjoyable but will leave a strange taste in your mouth once you start
thinking about it.
Like Pretty Woman its central concept is deeply flawed. You can’t
have a romantic comedy about a prostitute — you’d have thought
that was a golden rule of Hollywood, frankly! And you can’t satirise
the foibles of an industry while desperately wanting to be part of it.
Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway) wants to be a serious writer but is forced
to take a job as assistant to Miranda Priestly, feared editor of legendary
Runway magazine. Andy is a normal person floundering in a world where
minute differences in shade, the cut of a belt and, of course, an obsession
with being size zero are everything.
Faced with the wrath of Miranda — and senior assistant Emily (the
excellent Emily Blunt) — Andy digs her heels in, learns the ropes,
gets a makeover — with the help of fashion director Nigel (Stanley
Tucci, impeccable as always) — and becomes a great assistant. But
at what cost? As she evolves into one of the self-centred harpies that
make up the fashion world she moves further away from her friends and
is ultimately forced to make a choice.
Ex-Sex And The City helmer David Frankel has a light touch and Hathaway
is appealing but this is Streep’s film all the way. She’s
exceptional, even by her standards, making Miranda supremely bitchy but
always human. Just a shame then that the film doesn’t stick to its
guns.
Neil Davey
Happy Feet (U)
HAPPY Feet’s U certificate is something of a surprise. Yes a movie
about all-singing, all-dancing penguins was never going to get an 18 but
there’s a sense of ambition to this film — and some particularly-scary-for-small-children
scenes — that makes you question the BBFC’s logic.
On the downside cinema seats and infant pants will take a battering during
the darker moments: A leopard seal attack is thrilling but vicious, the
killer whale incident ditto. However, opening the film up to the entire
world age-wise means that the heavy ecological message will hit an awful
lot of impressionable people.
The world of the emperor penguin — as documented by last year’s
March Of The Penguins — is one of devotion and stoicism. And, according
to this slice of CGI, music. To find their life partner each penguin has
a heart song and their life’s work — well until adolescence
anyway — is to find out what that song is.
Unfortunately for Mumble (voiced by Elijah Wood) singing isn’t exactly
a strong point. He tries hard but he just isn’t a singer. When he
needs to get in touch with his feelings all that comes out is a screech…
but if he really lets go the feet start moving. And how.
Sadly as far as the close-knit group is concerned dancing to your own
tune is “just not penguin” and Mumble finds himself an outcast.
Until circumstances throw him into a community of Adelie penguins. And
those boys can dance. Suddenly with the help of Ramon (Robin Williams)
and his “amigos” Mumble gains the confidence to romance the
love of his life Gloria (Brittany Murphy) and be himself.
However, things on the ice aren’t good. The fish supply is drying
up. Mumble is pretty sure it’s the mysterious aliens — two
legs, hoods, front facing eyes — to blame. The emperor elders though
decide it’s Mumble’s fault because his unnatural ways have
offended nature. So Mumble sets out to find the truth and save his community.
And it’s at this point that the tone of the film changes. Cinematically
speaking the move is clunky and destroys the mood and the pace. But in
doing so, having lulled the audience in with its jolly tap-dancing penguins
and disco classics (via a little dark religious allegory), the change
of tone hits hard and the message — man is destroying the planet
and we’re all at fault — is all the more powerful. It’s
a brave move that, while a disaster in cinematic purist terms, can only
be applauded for at least attempting to make the masses from three to
83 think. A strange film but on balance essential viewing. Neil
Davey
****
Music
 Van
Morrison
Live At Montreux
VAN Morrison is a musician who has hit the heights of musical greatness
and dredged the depths of musical mediocrity in a long and varied career.
His early album Astral Heights is one of the most original and influential
Irish albums of all time. His pop song Brown Eyed Girl is among the best
tunes ever produced in that genre.
Mixed with such classics however are mediocre tunes made to sound worse
by their pretentiousness.
Van Morrison live doesn’t sound all that appealing given that the
Northern Irishman is not renowned for his sparkling wit between songs
or being able to engage with the audience.
As it is Van The Man lets the music do the talking and rather unselfishly
plays more of the old classics than the newer material he should be trying
to sell, making for an excellent live album from a musician at the top
of his game.
David Thorpe
 Damien
Rice
9
DAMIEN Rice is the unknown superstar of Irish music. He launched 9 on
the Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien shows in America and was the top
performer at Glastonbury last year.
The former Juniper frontman fulfilled years of promise with his last album
O so the pressure is on with this follow-up.
For a man who experimented much in his earlier music career Damien takes
the path of least resistance here producing an album with the same sort
of rock format that worked so well with O. It is music that is hard to
get excited about either way the best song is perhaps 9 Crimes and this
is where Rice rocks it up a bit.
Damien is at heart a rocker but after almost a decade of mixed fortunes
in Ireland he went to America and launched O as a sub-pop album. The result
is a very different kind of music but the obvious talent of the Kildareman
shines through and 9 is an album which should further cement his place
at the top of the musical tree.
David Thorpe
Charlie McGettigan
Stolen Moments
McGettigan is best known for winning the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest
with Paul Kavanagh with the highest points total ever recorded for their
excellent easy listening tune Rock And Roll Kids.
This latest album contains a similar blend of folk and rock. Some of the
songs such as Head Over Heals lose their effect by becoming overly sentimental
— taking away from the quality of the guitar playing and the excellence
of the music.
The single Stolen Moments is a little edgier and is a bit of a gem and
this contrast between fey sentimentality and excellent folk-rock continues
throughout the album.
There is a wide musical audience out there for an album like this.
The man has talent and Stolen Moments is likely to please McGettigan
fans but the rest of us might be left a little cold by the Leitrim troubador’s
latest offering.
David Thorpe
Happy Feet (U)
HAPPY Feet’s U certificate is something of a surprise. Yes a movie
about all-singing, all-dancing penguins was never going to get an 18 but
there’s a sense of ambition to this film — and some particularly-scary-for-small-children
scenes — that makes you question the BBFC’s logic.
On the downside cinema seats and infant pants will take a battering during
the darker moments: A leopard seal attack is thrilling but vicious, the
killer whale incident ditto. However, opening the film up to the entire
world age-wise means that the heavy ecological message will hit an awful
lot of impressionable people.
The world of the emperor penguin — as documented by last year’s
March Of The Penguins — is one of devotion and stoicism. And, according
to this slice of CGI, music. To find their life partner each penguin has
a heart song and their life’s work — well until adolescence
anyway — is to find out what that song is.
Unfortunately for Mumble (voiced by Elijah Wood) singing isn’t exactly
a strong point. He tries hard but he just isn’t a singer. When he
needs to get in touch with his feelings all that comes out is a screech…
but if he really lets go the feet start moving. And how.
Sadly as far as the close-knit group is concerned dancing to your own
tune is “just not penguin” and Mumble finds himself an outcast.
Until circumstances throw him into a community of Adelie penguins. And
those boys can dance. Suddenly with the help of Ramon (Robin Williams)
and his “amigos” Mumble gains the confidence to romance the
love of his life Gloria (Brittany Murphy) and be himself.
However, things on the ice aren’t good. The fish supply is drying
up. Mumble is pretty sure it’s the mysterious aliens — two
legs, hoods, front facing eyes — to blame. The emperor elders though
decide it’s Mumble’s fault because his unnatural ways have
offended nature. So Mumble sets out to find the truth and save his community.
And it’s at this point that the tone of the film changes. Cinematically
speaking the move is clunky and destroys the mood and the pace. But in
doing so, having lulled the audience in with its jolly tap-dancing penguins
and disco classics (via a little dark religious allegory), the change
of tone hits hard and the message — man is destroying the planet
and we’re all at fault — is all the more powerful. It’s
a brave move that, while a disaster in cinematic purist terms, can only
be applauded for at least attempting to make the masses from three to
83 think. A strange film but on balance essential viewing.
Neil Davey
****
Various artistes
Very Best Of School Reunion
AT THIS time of year the parties come thick and fast whether its the
works do or a family and friends affair and here is a great triple CD
to make any party go with a bang.
Nostalgia is the key word and by its very title this collection lets you
reminiscence about the 70s and 80s.
Every track on the compilation conjures up memories of bygone days of
punk, ska, new romantic and rock and pop images.
CD1 contains such gems as Wham’s Young Guns, Queen’s Don’t
Stop Me Now, A-Ha’s Take On Me, UB40’s Red Red Wine, Duran
Duran’s Rio and Madness’ Baggy Trousers.
And who can forget such 80s anthems as Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s
Relax, Spandau Ballet’s Gold or Culture Club’s Kharma Cameleon.
CD2 features some of the most successful solo artistes of that decade
with Kylie’s I Should Be So Lucky, Rick Astley’s Never Gonna
Give You Up, Nik Kershaw’s The Riddle and Toni Basil’s infinitely
irritating but nonetheless highly-catchy Mickey.
There are also great tracks from Go West (We Close Our Eyes), Erasure
(A Little Respect) and Living In A Box (Living In A Box).
CD3 continues in much the same vein with solo artistes Billy Idol (Rebel
Yell), Tina Turner (The Best) and David Bowie (China Girl) rubbing shoulders
with great band hits like The Undertones’ Teenage Kicks, Dexy’s
Midnight Runners’ Geno, Simple Minds’ Don’t You Forget
About Me and Katrina & The Waves’ Walking On Sunshine.
There’s even a few solid rock numbers thrown in from Whitesnake
(Here I Go Again), Marillion (Kayleigh) and Meatloaf (Paradise By A Dashboard
Light). Phil Savva
***
Boney M
The Magic Of Boney M
Boney M became one of those pop phenomenons like Abba or the Bee Gees.
No-one ever admits to liking them but their music always seems to get
played on the radio or at parties by desperate DJs.
Boney M have also recently become the subject of a highly-successful West
End musical starring Michelle Collins, Javine and Harvey.
You have to hand it to them as they could deliver a highly infectious
pop song that has stood the test of time.
They have sold some 80million records around the world and can lay claim
to having two singles in the Top 10 best-selling singles of all time.
Not even Elvis or The Beatles can beat that!
So it is easy to forget just how successful and just how many memorable
pop tunes they did deliver.
They will always be remembered for Rivers Of Babylon and Brown Girl In
The Ring but how many others will ring a bell once heard again?
Daddy Cool, Sunny, Mary’s Boy Child, Rasputin, Belfast and Hooray
Hooray It’s A Holi-Holiday. Ah yes you see — you remember
them all don’t you?
Twenty songs in all including a new remix of Sunny by Mousse T and a brand
new track A Moment Of Love.
Altogether now: By The Rivers of Babylon... Phil Savva
***
Various artistes
Dad Dancing
DAD Dancing — the very title conjures up images of your dad doing
those embarrassing dance moves at the family parties and these tunes are
ideally suited to just that.
A double CD collection of some truly awful songs together with some all-time
classics.
CD1 features such cringe-inducers as Right Said Fred (I’m Too Sexy),
Lionel Ritchie (All Night Long) and Dead Or Alive (Spin Me Round) but
makes up for it with Thin Lizzy (Boys Are Back In Town), Robert Palmer
(Addicted To Love) and Free (Alright Now).
CD2’s depths are plumbed with Carl Douglas, Jeff Beck and Chumbawumba
while The Foundations (Build Me Up Buttercup), Stealers Wheel (Stuck In
The Middle With You) and Kool & The Gang (Celebration) save the day.
It’s party music at its best... and worst. Phil Savva
***
Theatre
All my Sons
by Arthur Miller
DUBLIN-born actress Dearbhla Molloy gave an outstanding performance as
Kate Keller in Arthur Miller’s classic All My Sons.
She is the matriarch of the prosperous Keller family, her husband Joe,
played by Michael Byrne, being the owner of an aircraft engine factory
which did great business in World War II which has only been over two
years. Kate though is haunted by the loss-in-action of her eldest son
and such is her conviction that he is still alive that she has the audience
half-expecting him to walk on to the stage at any minute.
Another cloud hangs over the family however: Joe Keller’s factory
had turned out scores of defective engines and he had covered over the
fact in order to maximise his profits. When the scam is found out Joe
blames his partner who is jailed. The action centres around the partner’s
daughter Ann Deever (played by Alice Patten) who was engaged to the eldest
son but who now plans to marry Chris Keller the youngest son.
The play challenges the morality of business and war — a hugely
contemporary topic given the America’s involvement in Iraq and the
controversy surrounding the awarding of contracts for the re-building
of that country.
In 1944 Senator Harry S Truman set up a Senate committee which exposed
massive corruption in the way arms contracts were awarded and named and
shamed the Wright Aeronautical Corporation of Ohio which had exchanged
the ‘condemned’ tags on defective engines for ‘passed’
tags. Arthur Miller, very much the conscience of 20th century America,
used this scandal as the basis for this play and it is still an immensely
powerful critique of the American dream — as thought provoking as
any Michael Moore film.
Dearbhla Molloy and the cast do a superb job with this masterpiece
Tony Birtill
The Seafarer
by Conor McPherson
Five men, four mere mortals and one an altogether more malevolent entity
— who it transpires has adopted human form — meet in Baldoyle
by Howth Head near Dublin to play poker on Christmas Eve.
Conor McPherson’s recurring fascination with the dysfunctional,
alcohol-soaked Irish male is embellished here by his other preoccupations:
ghosts and the supernatural.
And it is Satan himself who turns up to the festive card school at the
home of brothers Richard (Jim Norton) and Sharky Harkin (Karl Johnson).
Two drinking cronies are also in attendance: Ivan (Conleth Hill) who is
fat and apologetic and drink-addled and Nicky (Michael McElhatton), a
sharpish manipulator in a world which is drunkenly dull and blunt.
Ron Cook manifests the devil himself as a Mr Lockhart in a well-cut suit,
slicked back hair and Trilby hat. His ‘target’ on this night
of supposed joy amongst this collection of losers and boozers and survivors
is Sharky whose soul is due for collection. There is a long build-up wherein
we learn that Richard has blinded himself by falling into a skip —
whilst intoxicated of course. This has not reduced his thirst and his
determination to see Christmas in an even more inebriated blur. Sharky
to the contrary is on the wagon and so tension is high. Ivan turns up
having been ejected by his long suffering missus but it is when Nicky,
who has stolen Sharky’s girlfriend, arrives with the diabolic Mr
Lockhart that the story takes off.
The humour is dark-roasted and the story is as old as good and evil themselves
and as satisfying a yarn as you might ever require. But it is McPherson’s
lyricism, affinity with humanity and his originality which makes the The
Seafarer such a fulfilling tale.
Joseph Crilly
Books
 U2
By U2
THIS book is more like an experience with U2 and is an essential piece
of memorabilia for any fan of the band.
It’s so alive it almost has a pulse and you genuinely feel U2 have
put their heart and soul into this as much as they would a new album.
Going back to 2001 and the band’s All That You Can’t Leave
Behind tour is a phenomenal section; you really get a feel for what the
band were going through.
An emotionally-savaged Bono walks on stage hours after the death of his
father and the band play one of the shows of their life.
You can’t fake that kind of raw energy; in many ways functioning
in the band helped keep his own grip on reality and gave the singer an
outlet for grief.
The book captures the atmosphere around the band.
A month after September 11 U2’s shows in New York had urgency about
them, they were life-affirming and potent. People in the city were looking
to the band for some empathy and thankfully someone came up to bat.
The book’s triumph is capturing and articulating U2 on paper in
words and pictures; it summons the same kind of spiritual rush that they
muster live and on record.
It’s a genuinely insightful read that gives a warts-and-all perspective
of who they are as people, their spiritual outlook, their flaws, their
backgrounds and growing up in Ireland.
There is a great humility about Edge, admitting U2’s limitations
in many ways has fed their energy and their desire to succeed.
Of course out of those limitations grew something magical which is captured
to full effect here. Bono also has a witty pop at himself.
Reflecting on the band’s image in the mid-80s he says: “I
look at pictures from that period and I am the Prince of Mullet and the
only thing that’s keeping that mullet away from pop history is a
hat designed for a taller man.” Richard Purden
*****
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