''Some Mother's Son'' is a 1996 film written and directed by Irish filmmaker

Terry George Terence George (born 20 December 1952) is an Irish screenwriter and director. Much of his film work (e.g. ''The Boxer'', ''Some Mother's Son'', and ''In the Name of the Father'') involves "The Troubles" in Northern Ireland. He was nominated fo ...

, co-written by

Jim Sheridan Jim Sheridan (born 6 February 1949) is an Irish playwright and filmmaker. Between 1989 and 1993, Sheridan directed two critically acclaimed films set in Ireland, ''My Left Foot'' and ''In the Name of the Father'', and later directed the film ...

, and based on the true story of the

1981 hunger strike The 1981 Irish hunger strike was the culmination of a five-year protest during the Troubles by Irish republican prisoners in Northern Ireland. The protest began as the blanket protest in 1976, when the British government withdrew Special Cat ...

in the

Maze Prison Her Majesty's Prison Maze (previously Long Kesh Detention Centre, and known colloquially as The Maze or H-Blocks) was a prison in Northern Ireland that was used to house alleged paramilitary prisoners during the Troubles from August 1971 to Sept ...

, in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

Provisional Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA; ), also known as the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and informally as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary organisation that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland, facilitate Irish reun ...

(IRA) prisoner

Bobby Sands Robert Gerard Sands ( ga, Roibeárd Gearóid Ó Seachnasaigh; 9 March 1954 – 5 May 1981) was a member (and leader in the Maze prison) of the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) who died on hunger strike while imprisoned at HM Prison Maze ...

(played by John Lynch) led a protest against the treatment of IRA prisoners, claiming that they should be treated as

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold priso ...

rather than criminals. The mothers of two of the strikers, played by

Helen Mirren Dame Helen Mirren (born Helen Lydia Mironoff; born 26 July 1945) is an English actor. The recipient of numerous accolades, she is the only performer to have achieved the Triple Crown of Acting in both the United States and the United Kingdom. ...

and

Fionnula Flanagan Fionnghuala Manon "Fionnula" Flanagan (born 10 December 1941) is an Irish stage, television, and film actress. For her contributions to the entertainment industry, she was given the IFTA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012. Flanagan is known fo ...

, fight to save their sons' lives. When the prisoners go on hunger strike and become incapacitated, the mothers must decide whether to abide by their sons' wishes, or to go against them and have them forcibly fed. Helen Mirren and John Lynch had already acted together in the 1984 Troubles-related film ''

Cal Cal or CAL may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Cal'' (novel), a 1983 novel by Bernard MacLaverty * "Cal" (short story), a science fiction short story by Isaac Asimov * ''Cal'' (1984 film), an Irish drama starring John Lynch and Helen Mir ...

''. The film was screened in the ''

Un Certain Regard (, meaning 'a certain glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films w ...

'' section at the

1996 Cannes Film Festival The 49th Cannes Film Festival was held from 9 to 20 May 1996. The Palme d'Or went to '' Secrets & Lies'' by Mike Leigh. The festival opened with ''Ridicule'', directed by Patrice Leconte and closed with '' Flirting with Disaster'', directed by ...

Cast

as Kathleen Quigley *

as Annie Higgins *

Aidan Gillen Aidan Murphy (born 24 April 1968), better known as Aidan Gillen (), is an Irish actor. He is the recipient of three Irish Film & Television Awards and has been nominated for a British Academy Television Award, a British Independent Film Award, a ...

as Gerard Quigley *

David O'Hara David Patrick O'Hara (born 9 July 1965) is a Scottish stage and character actor. A graduate of the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London, he is best known to audiences for his numerous supporting roles in high-profile films; includi ...

as Frank Higgins * John Lynch as

Tom Hollander Thomas Anthony Hollander (; born 25 August 1967) is an English actor. As a child Hollander trained with the National Youth Theatre and was later involved in stage productions as a member of the Footlights and was president of the Marlowe Soci ...

as Farnsworth *

Tim Woodward Timothy Oliver Woodward (born 24 April 1953) is an English actor. Tim Woodward was born in Kensington, London, England, the son of actors Edward Woodward and Venetia Barrett. He was educated at Haileybury and Imperial Service College. He is pr ...

as Harrington *

Ciarán Hinds Ciarán Hinds (; born 9 February 1953) is an Irish actor. Born in Belfast, Hinds is known for a range of screen and stage roles. He has starred in feature films including '' The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover'' (1989), ''Persuasion'' (19 ...

as Danny Boyle *

Geraldine O'Rawe Geraldine O'Rawe (born 4 March 1971) is an Irish actress.Gerard McSorley Gerard McSorley (Irish: Gearóid Mac Somhairle; born 1 January 1950) is an Irish theatre, television and film actor. Early life He was born in the County Tyrone town of Omagh and, after attending a Christian Brothers school in his hometown, ...

as Father Daly * Dan Gordon as Inspector McPeake * Grainne Delany as Theresa Higgins *

Ciarán Fitzgerald Ciarán Fitzgerald is an Irish film and television actor. Early life and career Fitzgerald was born in Dublin, Ireland. He made his film debut in 1992 when he played the role of Ossie Reilly in '' Into the West'', a film which he is perhaps ...

as Liam Quigley * Robert Lang as Government Minister * Oliver Maguire as Frank Maguire *

Stephen Hogan Stephen Hogan is an Irish actor and audiobook narrator. Biography Hogan was born in August 1965 and grew up in Darty, Dublin, Ireland. Hogan says he studied architecture at Edinburgh University but upon graduating did not see himself in tha ...

as Young Turk * Myles Walsh as Man at Church door

References

External links

* * * 1996 films Films based on actual events Films set in Belfast Films about The Troubles (Northern Ireland) Films about the Irish Republican Army English-language Irish films Irish-language films Political drama films Castle Rock Entertainment films Columbia Pictures films Films directed by Terry George 1996 drama films European Film Awards winners (films) 1981 Irish hunger strike 1996 directorial debut films Films about mother–son relationships 1990s English-language films {{1990s-drama-film-stub