Academy Award®-winning director Jessica Yu examines the essence of human drama: extremism. Her film features four individuals who have been devoted to personal odysseys – a cause, a quest, an ideal – to the point of total consumption. At first glance the characters appear disconnected: a former German terrorist, an ‘ex-gay’ evangelist, a bank robber and a martial arts student. But as their stories unfold, parallels emerge. Each character embarks on a journey for valid reasons, only to find himself so deeply embedded in the cause that he becomes the opposite of what he had intended. The film boldly marries theatre with reality, structuring interviews and verite with puppetry and Aristotelian chapters of drama as each man hurtles towards an inevitable moment of dark epiphany. This daring study reveals the timelessness of the men’s struggles, and offers an engaging portrait of masculinity, morality and fate. Thoroughly original.
www.protagonistthemovie.com
If you can’t see this, try Manufacturing Dissent (Sat. 9.00pm) or A Winter’s Journey (Sunday 4.00pm)

Festival ticket bundles are available directly from the box office.
€40 for 5. €70 for 10.
Please phone 01 679 3477.