Some Mother's Son (1996)

That was an excellent one.

Overrated

Lack of good storyline.

It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

I saw this movie quite a long time ago and felt it was true to fact of the Hunger Strike in 1981. I would like to know if this movie will ever be available on DVD. I was disappointed that I was unable to order the film. Is there someone you can recommend that I contact to order it? The film is the best I've seen and would recommend everyone seeing what has and is happening in Ireland. Be ready with the Kleenex, it is an extremely sad and touching film, I would not recommend for small children to see. 12 and above would probably be OK to see the film. At this writing their is still foreign occupation in Northern Ireland. Give Ireland back to the Irish...Erin go Bragh

Its ashame that more people don't know about this subject. I found this film to be very touching with a very strong moral. Yes the movie is about the I.R.A. and some of its most famous 'soldiers', however, the film touched on who is affected by these actions. I don't agree with the I.R.A but found myself empathetic to the families of the prisoners involved. Despite what the previous poster stated, this movie was pre-911 and touches not on the terrorists acts, but on the consquences of their actions. Helen Mirren was brilliant in this movie, as always. Its not exactley Michael Collins on the subject, and a lot of it was 'glamorized' for Hollywood, but all in all worth watching.

S0ME MOTHER'S SON is one of the most accurate depictions about the ordinary families caught up in the turmoil and oppression of Northern Ireland. The characters are loosely based on real persons living today, who were caught up in the Great Hunger Strike of 1981. (I know Annie, the Fionnula Flanagan character personally) The British injustice and oppression, portrayed is accurate and no ones imagination, it continues today. Helen Mirren captures the true spirit of the indomitable Irish women, the true heroes of Ireland. Fionnula Flanagan's character is brilliant, and often steals the scene from Ms. Mirren. It has little character insights typical of women of Ulster. Want an accurate movie, about the gallant people of Northern Ireland? this is it! It makes no apologies for the I.R.A.(refreshing.) The I.R.A. may be a grey area to some, but SOME MOTHERS SON shows the viewer that there wouldn't be an I.R.A. if there wasn't British oppression.

I must admit up front, being Irish-American and Catholic, I am biased towards these types of stories. That said, I would like to think I can dismiss message movies which are bad even if I agree with the message(for example, I am anti-nuclear, and I dislike the anti-nuclear movie FAT MAN AND LITTLE BOY). I remember the Bobby Sands hunger strike quite vividly, as I was 13 at the time, and taking an interest in the world around me. Of course, I was naive as well, thinking the IRA was wholly good here, not yet knowing there were many shades of grey here.Terry George co-wrote with Jim Sheridan both IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER and THE BOXER, both of which Sheridan also directed. Rather than doing a by the book approach, Sheridan used a poetic approach, which helped make the movies more provocative. George, on the other hand, is more blunt(to be fair, it's hard to make a poetic film about hunger strikes), which is limiting, but the power of the story does come through.What does lift this are the performances. Finnoula Flanagan I only knew from a guest spot on "Beauty and the Beast," but she's quite good here as the hardline mother. And she does bring some dimension to it; watch the dinner scene right before her son is captured, where she shows pride in her son without overdoing it, and her first scene with Mirren, where she states her case simply, without histrionics. The best performance, however, and the best reason to see this, is Mirren. She's more well-known for playing strong-willed characters("Prime Suspect," THE MADNESS OF KING GEORGE), so it's a bit of a shock to see her as a confused woman, but she shows us every step of the way her emotional journey without slipping into pathos.