The General ** (1998, Brendan Gleeson, Jon Voight, Adrian Dunbar, Sean McGinley) – Classic Movie Review 3331

Fancy two hours in the obnoxious company of a notorious Irish criminal called Martin Cahill, apparently a legend for his defiance of authority, relentless battle with the police and his weird family relationships? Well, maybe not!

Uncompromising writer-producer-director John Boorman appears to see him as a loveable Dublin folk hero rogue in the Robin Hood tradition as he pulls off two daring robberies in Ireland with his team. But this is the man we see crucify a colleague to a snooker table only to find out he’s innocent of a betrayal. Worse, Boorman follows this with a Carry On-style comic scene in hospital as the victim seeks help.

On the plus side, the then relatively little-known Brendan Gleeson gives a credible, exuberant star turn as Cahill, Jon Voight has fun as Inspector Ned Kenny, the Irish cop he plays cat and mouse with, and the 1998 award-winning black-and-white film is a technical tour-de-force, as shot by cinematographer Seamus Deasy. Boorman bases his screenplay on a novel by Paul Williams.

Boorman won Best Director Award at the Cannes Film Festival in 1998 and it won the 1999 Evening Standard British Film Award as Best Film. The London Critics Circle Film Awards 1999 voted Gleeson British Actor of the Year and John Boorman British Director of the Year.

Also in the cast are Adrian Dunbar, Sean McGinley, Maria Doyle Kennedy, Angeline Ball, Eamonn Owens, Eanna McLiam, Tom Murphy, Paul Hickey, Tommy O’Neill, John O’Toole, Ciaran Fitzgerald, Ned Dennehy, Vinnie Murphy, Roxanna Williams and Colleen O’Neill.

The film was shown in colour on American cable TV. In real life, Cahill robbed Boorman’s home, and his haul included a gold record he stole from Boorman’s wall, inspiring that scene in the movie. Boorman has said that Queen & Country (2014) is his last film.

Gleeson made his debut as a quarryman in The Field (1990) and played Michael Collins in the 1991 TV movie The Treaty, followed by small roles in Irish-shot Hollywood movies such as Far and Away (1992) and Into the West (1992). He made his breakthrough in the Scottish story Braveheart (1995), filmed in Ireland. In a 25-year career, he has made a name for himself with strong turns in movies such as The General, Gangs of New York, Kingdom of Heaven, the Harry Potter series and In Bruges.

© Derek Winnert 2016 Classic Movie Review 3331

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