Quintessentially Irish
Frank Mannion’s documentary on all things Irish proves that more is definitely less.
This film finds Frank Mannion returning to the format that worked in his 2022 film Quintessentially British. That is to say that he is seeking to give us an entertaining documentary rather than a sociological document but not without insight and quirky details (this new piece includes mention of the fact that Ireland's patron saint, St Patrick, was not Irish). This time around the fact that Mannion himself is Irish makes him an insider but his country’s character seems to lend itself less readily to his approach. Some found Quintessentially British too much concerned with London and the upper classes but that sphere yielded ceremonies, traditions and institutions that were suitably eye-catching. Much of the time it covered ground familiar to tourists but did so with a light touch and with some very engaging comments from the many interviewees before going on to offer a concluding section which engaged with today's world and suggested changing attitudes to what had previously been seen as quintessentially British.
One particular and welcome aspect of the way in which the pattern of the earlier film is followed comes when the final scenes here feature the views of Emma Dabiri who is both Irish and Nigerian. But much less happily Quintessentially Irish is some 23 minutes longer than its predecessor (it lasts for virtually two hours) and struggles to find material of impact related to its theme. Unease sets in at the start when the first ten minutes is devoted to an interview in Malibu with Pierce Brosnan. He appears very relaxed, recalls his childhood in Navan in County Neath, tells of the first movie that he saw when he and his mother moved to England and were living in Putney (prophetically it was the James Bond film Goldfinger) and refers to his eventual success on American television as Remington Steele. Thankfully one episode of that series was shot in Ireland, but while the opening footage would be a pleasing introduction to a film about Brosnan’s life it is hardly apt as an introduction to the wider question of what it means to be quintessentially Irish – and all the more so when treated at this length. And then when the film finally moves on it hardly broadens out since it turns to other Irish actors and a little later to awards given by the Irish Film & Television Academy. Here it does manage to have a word with both the director and the producer of the Oscar-nominated Irish film The Quiet Girl and reminds us of the popularity of Irish actors but there's nothing about the history of the Academy and no depth in the comments made.
It’s altogether more to the point in this context to describe what constitutes an Irish Welcome even if it comes across here as something not unique to Ireland due to a lack of specific examples that contain local colour. Late on Jeremy Irons, speaking as an Englishman settled there with his Irish wife, Sinead Cusack, declares that he finds appeal in the anarchic quality of the Irish but that aspect is not investigated unless one counts references to drinking that range from whiskey to Irish coffee and to a liking for fun. One notes too that Sinead is not an interviewee here although she would have been well placed to talk about the Cusacks as a significant acting family (the Abbey Theatre also goes unmentioned). James Joyce does come up with Bloomsday readings but such artists as Samuel Beckett, Sean O’Casey, W.B. Yates and his brother Jack only just squeeze in (Oscar Wilde is referenced too but mainly at the expense of Sadiq Khan who sees him as a Londoner).
Mannion devotes far more time to Prince Albert of Monaco, present as the son of Grace Kelly, and to two presidents, Ireland’s Michael D. Higgins whose wide interests and love of the arts make him an apt contributor and Joe Biden whose stress on his Irish ancestry is commented on (on balance it is seen as sincere although there is a questioning tone when it is remarked that he is a son of Ireland or likes to feel that he is - an extra touch here is that his Secret Service Code Name is revealed to be ‘Celtic’). Leaving aside such incidentals as Irish dancing and the Irish Derby, what really emerges as quintessentially Irish is the need for so many to leave their country to achieve success abroad. Ireland's relationship with the USA, with England and indeed with Bordeaux where many wineries have Irish roots play quite a role here. The success of Ricky Simms as an international sports agent brings in much footage of him and of Usain Bolt but as a memorable figure I would pick out Randal Plunkett who is in fact Lord Dunsany but dislikes stressing his title.
As all this suggests there is a wide range of contributors here with Brosnan, not limited to the opening segment, being the one seen most. In keeping with the film’s tone most of the comments tend to be relatively lightweight, but Ireland’s history is so imbued with religious sectarianism leading to conflict and violence that its seeming absence here becomes the elephant in the room. Eventually – but only after some 90 minutes or so – the subject does come up and The Troubles are mentioned. Yet within minutes we are back to the light mode with footage about the difficulty of pronouncing Irish names from Aiofe to Saoirse. All told there is a strong sense that Britain lent itself more readily to being a studied in this way and the extra length of the film only adds to that feeling despite the fact that Charlie Emseis again displays his editing skills. Even after the close of the film is signalled by references to an Irish Goodbye, we are given more images both alongside the end credits and indeed beyond that. One can but hope that next time around Frank Mannion will find material more amenable to his aims.
MANSEL STIMPSON
Featuring Pierce Brosnan, Jeremy Irons, Usain Bolt, Ricky Simms, Prince Albert of Monaco, Michael D. Higgins, Randal Plunkett, Emma Dabiri, Stephen Hogan, Michael Smurfit, Rory Guinness, Áine Lawlor, Marty Morrissey, Kingsley Atkins, Veronique Dausse, Kinou Cazes-Hachemian, Frank Mannion.
Dir Frank Mannion, Pro Frank Mannion, Screenplay Frank Mannion, Ph Matt Everett, James Mone, Josue Avalos, Frank Mannion and others, Ed Charlie Emseis, Music James Jones.
Swipe Films-Swipe Films.
119 mins. Ireland. 2024. US Rel: 12 March 2024. UK Rel: 26 April 2024. No cert.
