''Flick'' is a 2000 Irish film. The plot is centres on a small-time drug dealer as he goes about his business in the bars and clubs of
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
. The film is written and directed by
Fintan Connolly
Fintan Connolly is an Irish film director, screenwriter and producer living in Dublin.
Much of his earlier work was in television documentaries which explored social issues in Ireland.
He has also made films, including ''Flick'' (2000), '' Trou ...
David Wilmot
David Wilmot (January 20, 1814 – March 16, 1868) was an American politician and judge. He served as Representative and a Senator for Pennsylvania and as a judge of the Court of Claims. He is best known for being the prime sponsor and eponym ...
and
Gerard Mannix Flynn
Mannix Flynn (born Gerard Mannix Flynn, 4 May 1957) is an Irish independent politician who has served as a Dublin City Councillor since May 2009.
David Wilmot
David Wilmot (January 20, 1814 – March 16, 1868) was an American politician and judge. He served as Representative and a Senator for Pennsylvania and as a judge of the Court of Claims. He is best known for being the prime sponsor and eponym ...
as Des
* Isabelle Menke as Isabelle
*
Gerard Mannix Flynn
Mannix Flynn (born Gerard Mannix Flynn, 4 May 1957) is an Irish independent politician who has served as a Dublin City Councillor since May 2009.Alan Devlin as Pop Devlin
* Aaron Harris as Gerry Murphy
* Maria Lennon as Kay
*
Alan Devine
Alan Devine (born 1970) is an Irish people, Irish actor.
Early life and education
Devine was born in County Galway in 1970. He has played minor roles in several films. Devine graduated with honours from Trinity College Dublin, where he studi ...
as Barry
* Vincent McCabe as Taxi Driver
Production
The film was shot in 18 days on a budget of £18,000. According to Connolly "We put together a compact crew – first-timers like ourselves – and we shot the film in eighteen days, mostly within a three mile radius of O’Connell Bridge. We tried to follow some basic guidelines we had culled together from reading and hearing about low-budget film-making – namely, you write a script with a couple of characters in one location; you do an inventory of availability; you make it fit your budget; you rehearse well, talk everything through; you spend the money on getting the best gear you can afford; you keep the shoot tight – three weeks maximum; you use locations that are free; everyone defers their payments, but you feed and water them well and keep to a twelve-hour day, six day week; you shoot a ratio of 6/1 and you keep away from people who say it can’t be done."
Reception
Harvey O’Brien suggested the film "has a distinctive tone which is matched by David Murray's smoothly self-involved performance as the central character. One comes away with a definite feeling of the brooding angst of the new entrepreneurial opt-out class in middle class Celtic Tiger Ireland, and though it is really so much navel-gazing on the road to a silly resolution, it works on its own terms ... It is not entirely original: movies about wandering semi-remorseful low-lifes are part of a long tradition in both European and American cinemas, but it does have the benefit of being more or less the first Irish film of its kind and tone arguably since Neil Jordan's Angel (which it vaguely resembles in some ways). It is also unusual that the film features a drug dealer who neither lives in a ghetto nor a palace, but spends as much time lounging on his couch in the nice apartment he shares with his girlfriend on Dublin's southside as he does politely meeting and greeting his customers in town. Flick is not a masterpiece, but in the manner of November Afternoon or
How to Cheat in the Leaving Certificate
''How to Cheat in the Leaving Certificate'' is a 1997 independent Irish film directed by Graham Jones, in which six teenagers devise a plan to cheat in their Leaving Certificate final school examinations. The film was shot in black and white ...
, it has the merit of accomplishing what it sets out to do. It is a modestly scaled, no-star, small crew production which works considerably better than many of its more elaborate, higher budget equivalents." Ciaran Carty in
Sunday Tribune
The ''Sunday Tribune'' was an Irish Sunday broadsheet newspaper published by Tribune Newspapers plc. It was edited in its final years by Nóirín Hegarty, who changed both the tone and the physical format of the newspaper from broadsheet to tab ...
said the film "brilliantly taps into the self-aware beat of Dublin today, a youth culture of clubbing, drugs and casual sex" while Hugh Linehan in
The Irish Times
''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...
said the film "reveals Connolly as a film maker of considerable talent". Lael Loewenstein in
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
said "Pic is beautifully lit and strikingly filmed. Awash in bold red and blue strokes highlighting Dublin's menacing underworld, pic establishes a realm of glamorous filth that is as fascinating as its characters are distasteful."
Accolades
The film premiered at the 44th Murphy's
Cork Film Festival
The Cork International Film Festival, also known as the Cork Film Festival (), is a film festival held annually in Cork City
Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the i ...
in October 1999. It was screened at the
Galway Film Fleadh
The Galway Film Fleadh (; Irish for "festival") is an international film festival founded in 1989 as part of the Galway Arts Festival. Describing itself as Ireland’s leading film festival, the event is held every July in Galway city in Ireland ...
in July 2000 where programmer Pat Collins wrote "Flick is Fintan Connolly’s debut feature but he shows no sign of first time nerves. It’s effortlessly stylish and slick, closer in tone and mood to some recent Spanish films than to the average Irish offering. David Murray acts in his first major role and has a great screen presence – his swaggering saunters through the Dublin streets form the spine of the film. Owen McPolin’s camerawork is worth special mention, seldom has Dublin looked so appealing."
It premiered in North American at the
AFI Fest
The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the History of cinema in the United States, motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private fun ...
in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
in November 2000. Programmer Shaz Bennett wrote "Intoxicating performances and the resonant echoing soundtrack make this love thriller by director/writer Fintan Connolly a haunting, intensely erotic film. FLICK punctures the surface of an individual adrift in the absence of compassion or support – very much like the suburbs, minus the drinking, smoking and screwing."
Music
The musical score for ''Flick'' was written by Niall Byrne.
Release
The film received a domestic release opening at 4 cinemas in Dublin and Cork on 8 September 2000.
Home media
Xtra-vision
Xtra-vision was an online video, film and music store in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland operated by Hilco Ireland.
The company original was Ireland's largest chain of DVR/DVD/Blu-ray rental stores and entertainment retailing com ...
released the Region 2 VHS in January 2001. Vanguard Cinema released the Region 1 DVD in Fall 2003.
Fintan Connolly
Fintan Connolly is an Irish film director, screenwriter and producer living in Dublin.
Much of his earlier work was in television documentaries which explored social issues in Ireland.
He has also made films, including ''Flick'' (2000), '' Trou ...