FOR A LITTLE nation, we’ve got a lot of film talent.
It was tough picking a top list of cult Irish movies, as there are just so many great films out there. Honourable mention must go to War of the Buttons, My Left Foot, The Field, Once, The Quiet Man, The Wind That Shakes The Barley…
But to the top 5!
Adam and Paul is a gritty yet touching film focused on two Dublin drug addicts, as they wander around the capital trying to get a fix.
Image: via The Cinema Guy
It’s a poignant movie, but one well worth a watch. Director Lenny Abrahamson’s other films, Garage and What Richard Did, are similarly great but difficult films.
Inside I’m Dancing is a life-affirming tragicomedy about two young men in wheelchairs striving for their independence.
Image: via Fan Pop
This was an early introduction to James McAvoy for audiences, who gives an extremely likeable turn as Rory O’Shea, the film’s driving force. A sad, beautiful and eye-opening film.
This is an unusual pick for the list, being a TV movie rather than a cinema release, but we feel it’s deserving of its place.
Image: via Movie Mail
Roddy Doyle’s Barrytown trilogy translates brilliantly to film, and by the end we really feel like we know the incorrigible Rabbitte clan. It also features Irish acting powerhouses, the lads Brendan Gleeson and Colm Meaney.
Who doesn’t love The Commitments? Also from the mind of Roddy Doyle comes a raucous story of Dublin youth, success, failure and of course Irish soul.
Image: via Consequence of Sound
Look out for a frizzy young Glen Hansard, who years later was to win an Oscar for another great Irish film, Once.
A sprawling black comedy based around how all our lives and relationships are inter-connected… Particularly apt for us Irish!
Intermission came out in 2003 and has been our top pick of Irish independent films since then. It’s bawdy, realistic, funny, sad and reflects Irish life as we know it – but maybe don’t want to accept.
The best films are those that can make us laugh and cry (sometimes at the same time) and Intermission definitely has it. A great film.
Image: via Joe Daly
And if you want to see Intermission the way it should be seen, then you’re in luck.
Jameson’s Cult Film Club is all about watching top cult films at spectacular, one-off screenings in venues specially staged to evoke the film being shown – and Intermission is next on the list.
In order to be in with a chance to attend the exclusive screening of Intermission (which is topped off by a Jameson bar and DJs), register on the website and join the conversation on Twitter at @CultFilmIreland.
Cult films invariably spark a debate, so let us know if you agree with our top picks in the comments – and if you’ll be heading along to the next Jameson Cult Film Club.
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