A Date for Mad Mary - The Latest in a Line of Great Irish Films

With the public release this Friday of 'A Date for Mad Mary', we thought it opportune to highlight the wealth of films produced in Ireland over the years, many of which can be borrowed in our branch libraries. But first a look at 'A Date for Mad Mary', the latest film to underline the current depth of talent in Ireland as Esther McCarthy put it in the Examiner newspaper recently. Esther goes on to say - "A Date For Mad Mary feels like a real game-changer — not just for its terrific young female cast, but for first-time film-maker Darren Thornton. He has fashioned a funny, moving and gritty story out of Mary McArdle, who returns home to Drogheda after a stint in prison to find many of those closest to her have moved on. Undaunted, she sets about finding a date for the wedding of her lifelong best friend, Charlene."

'A Date for Mad Mary' (Element Pictures) was very well received at the Galway Film Fleadh last July where it premiered and where lead actress Seána Kerslake won the new talent award. Seána's exceptional performance has already been highlighted by many reviewers and media pundits; she was recently described in the Irish Times as "the hottest new name in Irish cinema", and The Irish Independent tell us she is set to become a household name and describes her as "the busiest Irish actress of 2016". Seána previously appeared in Dollhouse (2012), for which she was an IFTA Award nominee for Best Actress, and you will also see her in the soon to be aired new six-part female-centred RTÉ2 comedy-drama series, 'Can't Cope, Won't Cope'. You may have recently heard Seána and Yasmine Akram, on whose one woman show the movie is based, on RTÉ1's The Ryan Tubridy Show where Seána spoke also of her association with Dublin City Public Libraries!  Onwards and upwards for our Seána!

A Date for Mad Mary, on release 2nd September 2016, starring Seána Kerslake, Tara Lee, Charleigh Bailey. Directed by Darren Thornton.

And while 'A Date for Mad Mary' may be the latest Irish production, let's remind you of many of the great films that have graced our screens over the years. The following list of course is not exhaustive, I'm sure you could probably think of some that you might like to share with others by way of a comment below?

The Quiet Man (1952) starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara, directed by John Ford.
Cal (1984) (not in stock, sorry!) starring Helen Mirren, John Lynch, Donal McCann and John Kavanagh, directed by Pat O’Connor. 
Eat the Peach (1986) starring Stephen Brennan, Eamon Morrissey, Catherine Byrne and Niall Toibin, directed by Peter Ormrod.
My Left Foot (1989) starring Daniel Day-Lewis and Brenda Fricker, directed by Jim Sheridan.
The Field (1990) starring  Richard Harris, directed by Jim Sheridan.
The Commitments (1991) starring Robert Arkins, written by Roddy Doyle, screenplay adapted by Dick Clement, Ian La Frenais and Roddy Doyle.
The Crying Game (1992) starring Stephen Rea and Forest Whitaker, directed by Neil Jordan.
Into the West (1992) starring Ciarán Fitzgerald, Rúaidhrí Conroy and David Kelly, written by Jim Sheridan, directed by Mike Newell.
In the Name of the Father (1993) starring Daniel Day-Lewis.
The Snapper (1993) starring Colm Meaney and Tina Kellegher, writer Roddy Doyle.
Michael Collins (1996) starring Liam Neeson Julia Roberts, Aiden Quinn and Alan Rickman, written and directed by Neil Jordan.
The Van (1996) starring Colm Meaney and Donal O’Kelly, directed by Stephen Frears.
The General (1998) starring Brendan Gleeson, Adrian Dunbar and Jon Voight, directed by John Boorman.
Angela's Ashes (1999) starring Emma Watson, Robert Carlyle, Joe Breen, Ciaran Owens and Michael Legge, directed/co-written by Alan Parker, based on book by Frank McCourt. 
The Magdalene Sisters (2002) starring Anne-Marie Duff, Nora Jane Noone and Geraldine McEwan, directed by Peter Mullan.
Intermission (2003) starring Cillian Murphy and Colin Farrell.
Veronica Guerin (2003) starring Cate Blanchett.
Inside I'm Dancing (2004) starring James McAvoy, Steven Robertson, Romola Garai and Brenda Fricker, directed by Damien O'Donnell.
Breakfast on Pluto (2005) starring Cillian Murphy, Morgan Jones, Eva Birthistle and Liam Neeson, directed by Neil Jordan.
The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006) starring Cillian Murphy and Orla Fitzgerald, directed by Ken Loach.
Once (2007) starring Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová.
Garage (2007)  starring Pat Shortt, Anne-Marie Duff and Conor J. Ryan, directed by Lenny Abrahamson and written by Mark O'Halloran.
The Secret of Kells (2009) French-Belgian-Irish animated fantasy film. Animated by Cartoon Saloon, directed by Tomm Moore and Nora Twomey.
The Guard (2011) starring Brendan Gleeson, Don Cheadle and Mark Strong, directed by John Michael McDonagh.
What Richard Did (2012) starring Jack Reynor, Roisin Murphy, Lars Mikkelsen and Lorraine Pilkington, directed by Lenny Abrahamson.
Dollhouse (2012)  starring Seána Kerslake, Johnny Ward, Kate Stanley Brennan, directed by Kirsten Sheridan. 
Song of the Sea (2014) Animated film from Cartoon Saloon, directed by Tomm Moore.
Calvary (2014) starring Brendan Gleeson, Chris O’Dowd, Kelly Reilly and Aidan Gillen, directed by John Michael McDonagh.
Brooklyn (2015) Irish-British-Canadian romantic drama film starring  Saoirse Ronan, Emory Cohen and Domhnall Gleeson. Directed by John Crowley and written by Nick Hornby, based on Colm Tóibín's novel.