Never grow old

Drab western about an Irish immigrant in the early days of white America. Mostly set at night or indoors lit with candles it's about an undertaker who buries the victims of a nasty bar owner (Cusack). Set in a hamlet in the mountains it's routine enough. Like most Irish movies it's the story that matters rather than character or setting. Cut, cut,cut without any scene standing out or going on too long. Best scene was the hanging of the young woman but that wasn't effective. The best Westerns get made by directors working mostly in that genre but that doesn't happen anymore. Anyone who watches these films already knows a rural, wooden cabin on screen every few minutes will eventually get burned down.

Title: Never grow old
Genre: Western
New/old: New
Cinema/DVD: Cinema

KIRSTEN SHERIDAN ARTICLE IN TODAY'S INDO

Rather sad article in today's Irish Independent newspaper about Ireland's most overrated female film director. She's been abroad for six years trying to make a career not in movies now but in television. Still looking for something to say in her work too she says. Too much competition and lack of support from RTE are to blame. Never mind the dozen or so more talented Irish female film directors that have appeared since Dollhouse. How many of those knobs on Filmmakers' Network who got me banned still rate her as a director? This blog would never exist only for I correctly stated she was standing on the shoulders of giants.

Animals

Impressive movie about two women of around 30. It's like a hipster remake of the Irish film Snakes and ladders. They go to pubs, clubs, poetry readings, and gigs. Trying their best to put off adulthood they get involved with various men including a pianist and a poet. One of the girls has writer's block while her more stable sister has a baby. The other girl is just strange. Set in Dublin though there are few direct references apart from some dialogue. Most of it is set at night. Some good scenes include the wedding dress and the taxi journey at the end. It's lively, funny, uneven and unpredictable. How many Irish films fit that description?

Title: Animals
Genre: Clubbing
New/old: New
Cinema/DVD: Cinema

CATALYST A DECADE ON

Back in 2009 three films got made under our Film Board's low-budget Catalyst scheme to help fund new directors. The resulting films were promising: 100 mornings was a Corman-cabin-in-the-woods-futuristic effort, Eamon was a naughty-kid-on-holiday movie and Rewind was an ex-boyfriend-stalker thriller. The scheme was set up to help promising filmmakers. Sadly, a decade on not one of these title's directors has made another feature. So what was the point of this scheme?