''Da'' is a 1988 film directed by Matt Clark, produced by

Julie Corman Julie Ann Corman ( Halloran; born ) is an American film producer. She is married to film producer and director Roger Corman. Career In 1970, Julie Corman married film director/producer, Roger Corman. Corman produced a series of "Night Nurses" f ...

, and starring

Martin Sheen Ramón Antonio Gerardo Estévez (born August 3, 1940), known professionally as Martin Sheen, is an American actor. He first became known for his roles in the films ''The Subject Was Roses'' (1968) and ''Badlands'' (1973), and later achieved wid ...

Barnard Hughes Bernard Aloysius Kiernan Hughes (July 16, 1915 – July 11, 2006), known professionally as Barnard Hughes, was an American actor of television, theater and film. Hughes became famous for a variety of roles; his most notable roles came after mi ...

, reprising his

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...

-winning Broadway performance, and William Hickey. The screenplay was written by Irish playwright and journalist

Hugh Leonard Hugh Leonard (9 November 1926 – 12 February 2009) was an Irish dramatist, television writer, and essayist. In a career that spanned 50 years, Leonard wrote nearly 30 full-length plays, 10 one-act plays, three volumes of essay, two autobiograph ...

, who adapted it from his 1978 play '' Da'', with additional material from his autobiographical book ''Home Before Night''.

Plot

Charlie is a playwright in New York who must travel to Ireland to oversee the burial of his father, "Da". During his time there he visits his childhood home, and is visited by the spirit of his deceased father. Charlie then travels down memory lane, reliving both happy and sad memories.

Cast

as Nick Tynan *

as Charlie Tynan * William Hickey as Drumm * Karl Hayden as Young Charlie Tynan * Doreen Hepburn as Maggie Tynan *

Hugh O'Conor Hugh O'Conor (born 19 April 1975) is an Irish actor, writer, director, and photographer. In 2020, he was listed as number 49 on ''The Irish Times'' list of Ireland's greatest film actors. Career His first film appearance was opposite Liam Neeso ...

as Boy Charlie Tynan * Ingrid Craigie as Polly *

Joan O'Hara Joan O'Hara (10 October 1930 – 23 July 2007) was an Irish stage, film and television actress. She was one of Ireland's most popular actresses and was, at her death, recognisable to television viewers as Eunice Dunstan, a gossip in ''Fair Cit ...

as Mrs. Prynne * Jill Doyle as Mary "The Yellow Peril" Tate * Peter Hanly as Young Oliver

Reception

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

said, "''Da'' is in many ways a predictable movie; we know from the beginning more or less where it will have to go, and so it does."

References

External links

* * * * 1988 films 1988 drama films American drama films Films scored by Elmer Bernstein American films based on plays Films set in Ireland Films produced by Julie Corman Films with screenplays by Hugh Leonard 1988 directorial debut films 1980s English-language films 1980s American films {{1980s-drama-film-stub