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Director
Pearse Elliott
Credits
Producers: Paddy Breathnach, Paddy McDonald, Robert Walpole. Writer: Pearse Elliott
Principal Cast
Ken Stott, Tyrone McKenna, Gillian Anderson, Robert Carlyle
Category
FeatureFamily & Teen
A young boy’s friendship with a greyhound provides the starting point for this heartfelt tale about people coming out of the shadow of Northern Ireland’s past. In an act of compassion, the young Donal (Tyrone McKenna) saves a doomed greyhound from the often-cruel trainer Joe (Ken Stott). Naming the animal ‘The Mighty Celt’, Donal proves a good companion for the animal, turning it into a champion racer, much to Joe’s disgust. This anger proves to be a flashpoint for old grievances to emerge, as Donal’s mother Kate (Gillian Anderson) begins a relationship with ex-IRA fighter ‘O’ (Robert Carlyle), a man despised by Joe. A potentially grim story, these painful events are relieved by the film’s uplifting refusal to abandon the hope of Donal’s youthful decency bringing events to an affirming conclusion.
Age: 15
82 minutes, Ireland, 2005, Colour
AKIRA (4K RESTORATION) 18.00
AMÉLIE (25th ANNIVERSARY) 15.30
FATHER MOTHER SISTER BROTHER 13.00
HOKUM 13.15 (OC), 20.45
ONCE UPON A TIME IN A CINEMA 14.00, 18.20
PRIMAVERA 20.35
ROSE OF NEVADA 15.40
THE SONG CYCLE 16.20, 20.25
THE STRANGER 18.10
The IFI is supported by The Arts Council