The Secret of Roan Inish (1994)

User Rating:

7.3/10   

Director:

John Sayles

Writers (WGA):

Rosalie K. Fry (book)
John Sayles (screenplay)

Release Date:

3 February 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Family | Fantasy

Tagline:

The secret's out!

Plot:

10-year-old Fiona is sent to live with her grandparents in a small fishing village in Donegal, Ireland...

Plot Keywords:

Seal | Ireland | Island | Child | Kids And Family

Awards:

1 win & 6 nominations

Cast

Jeni Courtney	...	Fiona
Pat Slowey	...	Priest
Dave Duffy	...	Jim
Declan Hannigan	...	Oldest brother
Mairéad Ní Ghallchóir	...	Barmaid
Eugene McHugh	...	Bar Patron 1
Tony Rubini	...	Bar Patron 2
Mick Lally	...	Hugh
Eileen Colgan	...	Tess
Richard Sheridan	...	Eamon
Micheal MacCarthaigh	...	Schoolmaster
Fergal McElherron	...	Sean Michael
Brendan Conroy	...	Flynn
John Lynch	...	Tadhg
Frankie McCafferty	...	Tim

MPAA:

Rated PG for some moments that may be disquieting to small children.

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA | Ireland

Language:

English | Irish Gaelic

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | South Korea:All | Argentina:13 | Australia:G | Chile:14 | Spain:T | USA:PG | Finland:S

Filming Locations:

County Donegal, Ireland

Company:

Jones Entertainment Group

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: Near the end of the film, when the seals push the cradle-boat back into the sea, you can clearly see a hand at the top left corner of the frame grab the cradle and pull it.

A lovely magical tale in 1940's Ireland

The film examines a young Irish girl, Fiona Coneely, and her search for her baby brother, Jamie, in the late 1940's. Jamie disappeared a few years earlier, and hints begin to emerge that he may have been carried off by the many seals that haunt the island where he lived.

Fiona is portrayed quite well. Although she looks frail physically, she nevertheless conveys a deep strength and fearlessness as she uncovers strange elements of her family's past and begins to believe that Jamie may still be alive

The Irish setting is played up very strongly. There are lovely seascapes and good use of Irish music. The faces of the people are very evocative as well, with many rugged, homely appearances that feel very honest and comfortable. The magical elements are portrayed seriously and delicately without getting too corny -- no dancing leprechauns.

The messages of the film are done intelligently, without much dialogue, relying mostly on visuals. One thing I noticed in a second viewing is how much of the time the film shows people working. It opens up in a tough-looking laundromat or factory of some sort, and many of the key scenes are set with the main characters talking while they are busy with the work of their daily lives. There is an important scene where children labor especially hard for something that has a strong influence on the resolution of the story. At no time is there an overt quote about working, but the importance of labor comes through seeing people do it.

"Roan Inish" works well for young children as well. My younger sons were swept into it, although it is quite unlike any film they had seen before. They definitely thought it was unusual, but they seemed to enjoy the characters and situations and had a lot of interested questions about what was going on.