In The Name of the Father

Hmm …

8th September, 2011

You know, sometimes, it’s not ’til something — or someone’s — gone that we realise we’ve missed a thing.

Or person, I should maybe say.

It’s true, though, isn’t it … ?

I’ve got to confess, I’m thinking of one of the unsung heroes of the British screen, the late Pete Postlethwaite, who died only a few days ago …

You never miss ’em, ’til they’re gone …

Given that he only died, last Sunday … ?

I thought it seemed the right thing to do to suggest to Adrian that we watch the 1993, Jim Sheridan film, In The Name Of The Father, as a sort of memorial to the actor: possibly also to the man he played in the film …

~≈§≈~

In The Name Of The Father sees Postlethwaite playing Giuseppe Conlon, father of Gerry Conlon, one of the Guildford Four: the four people wrongly accused of the Guildford Pub bombings.

And follows both Gerry — and Giuseppe — as they’re gaoled for the killings.

And follows their efforts to prove themselves innocent.

No easy task, as Giuseppe dies before he has his day in court: leaving his son, Gerry — Daniel Day-Lewis — to carry on alone.

~≈§≈~

9/1/2011

Now, I’m thinking that In The Name Of The Father is an absolutely fantastic film.

Well written, well acted — it is, after all, the film that earned Pete Postlethwaite an Oscar nomination — and incredibly well put together.

But I’ve met one or two people over the years who’d not go near it, given it deals with Northern Ireland during the Troubles.

That’s understandable …

Coming from someone who maybe lost a loved one* during the Troubles.

Anybody else, though … ?

I think I’d be a touch less tolerant.

Oh, now don’t get me wrong, I think the IRA’s campaign was not the way to handle nationalist or Catholic complaints in the province: what’s more, it didn’t actually help encourage our side to behave well. That was The Troubles for you.

Which isn’t to say some with-in the UK government behaved well, either.   There’s still debate, after all this time, about the Prevention Of Terrorism Act: I know Adrian and I were talking about the clause in it that allowed for a suspect to be held for seven days.

Which seems minor, now, when you think current laws allows a suspect to be held for up twenty-eight days.

Add Control Orders to that, and you’ve a very draconian mix.

All in the name of national security.

~≈§≈~

However …

However, I still maintain that In The Name Of The Father is a fantastic film.

And one that’s important, as well.

After all, it’s one that raises a rather important point, I think.

Quite simply, it tells us that British Justice is some of the finest in the world.

But being blunt?

It is capable of being a bit of a twit, in some cases.

For starters, it’s based on law: and the law is perfectly capable — by a mix of human imperfection, and the tangled web of precedent — of getting stuff very wrong.

Add to that, the implacability of bigoted police who’s arrested a suspect and are intent on finding him guilty of the crime — regardless of the fact someone else has confessed.

And we have a film that highlights a triumph for British justice.

As well as the wrong it did it the first place.

I can’t help but wonder one thing.

Has anyone shown In The Name Of The Father to the people who set up the Guantanamo Bay prison camps … ?

In The Name Of The Father

★★★★

Cast Role

Daniel Day-Lewis Gerry Conlon

Pete Postlethwaite Giuseppe Conlon

John Lynch Paul Hill

Mark Sheppard Paddy Armstrong

Beatie Edney Carole Richardson

Emma Thompson Gareth Peirce

Don Baker Joe McAndrew

Corin Redgrave Inspector Robert Dixon

* Saying that … ? I can still remember seeing clips of Gordon Wilson, saying he forgave the IRA bombers who’d killed his daughter during the Enniskillen bombings. I still think I’d not be that strong …