The Rising of the Moon (1957)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

John Ford

Writers:

Lady Augusta Gregory (story)
Michael J. McHugh (story)

Release Date:

10 August 1957 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

Three vignettes of old Irish country life, based on a series of short stories. In "The Majesty of the...

Plot Keywords:

Ireland | Episodic

Cast

Tyrone Power	...	Introduced by
Maureen Connell	...	May Ann McMahon
May Craig
Eileen Crowe	...	Police Sergeant's Wife
Cyril Cusack	...	Inspector Dillon
Maureen Cusack
Maureen Delaney
Donal Donnelly	...	Prisoner
Paul Farrell
Harold Goldblatt
Frank Lawton	...	British officer
Edward Lexy	...	Quartermaster Sergeant
Jack MacGowran	...	Mickey J. - the poitín maker
Doreen Madden
Denis O'Dea	...	Police Sergeant

Runtime:

81 min

Country:

Ireland | USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:S

Company:

Four Provinces

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Abbey Theatre: The First 100 Years (2004)

A rarely screened Oirish classic! A humorous portrayal of an Ireland long past, but not forgotten.

1. `The Majesty of the Law' - Frank O'Connor & Frank S. Nugent.

This is the story of a proud Irish small-holder and his 'encounter' with the Law. It humorously portrays rural Irish people, the nature of village relationships, small-town disagreements, the people's attitude to the law and the officials' accommodation of those ways. Noel Purcell, as the small-farmer, and the other village people over-act in a typically stage-irish manner. ( `Is it yourself?' - `It is, to be sure.' and many, many other oirish lines that have become classics.) Cyril Cusack gives a much more subtle performance (one of his few!).

2. `A Minute's Wait' - Michael J. McHugh. Another funny story of rural Ireland has the Ballyscran to Dunfaill train at the station for its scheduled one minute stop. As the title suggests the story looks at the Irish attitude to time-keeping, and how in rural Ireland time could wait for man, . for prize goats, for Bishop's dinners, and most importantly, for a pint of porter (just the one, of course). A rare chance to see the great Jimmy O'Dea again - `Merciful hour!'

3. `1921' - Adapted from The Rising of the Moon by Lady Augusta Gregory. This is the more serious story of a young patriot who is to be hanged by the `Black and Tans' (a vicious paramilitary force which terrorised Ireland during the last years of British control). The story does show, and is true to, the different attitudes of the various factions at the time. The vicious Black and Tans, the more considerate British military, the double standards of the RIC Royal Irish Constables and collaborators, and the belligerence of the oppressed Irish people. While the acting is much more subtle than the previous short films, `1921' is let down by being poorly written and adapted. There are some great shots of 1950s Dublin, including the Liffy bridges and the Four Courts.