Bloody Sunday (2002)

Director:

Paul Greengrass

Writer:

Paul Greengrass (written by)

Release Date:

25 January 2002 (UK)

Genre:

Drama | History | War

Plot:

A dramatization of the Irish civil rights protest march and subsequent massacre by British troops on January 30, 1972.

Plot Keywords:

Protest March | March | Ireland | Massacre | Irish

Awards:

19 wins & 21 nominations

Cast

James Nesbitt	...	Ivan Cooper
Allan Gildea	...	Kevin McCorry
Gerard Crossan	...	Eamonn McCann
Mary Moulds	...	Bernadette Devlin
Carmel McCallion	...	Bridget Bond (as Carmel Mccallion)
Tim Pigott-Smith	...	Major General Ford
Nicholas Farrell	...	Brigadier Maclellan
Christopher Villiers	...	Major Steele (as Chris Villiers)
James Hewitt	...	Colonel Tugwell
Declan Duddy	...	Gerry Donaghy
Edel Frazer	...	Gerry's girl
Joanne Lindsay	...	Mary Donaghy
Mike Edwards	...	Soldier 027
Gerry Hammond	...	Para F
Jason Stammers	...	Para G

Also Known As:

Sunday (Australia) (TV title)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence and language.

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

UK | Ireland

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Brazil:14 | Finland:K-15 | Australia:MA | Denmark:15 | France:U | Netherlands:16 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | South Korea:12 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | Argentina:13 | Iceland:14

Filming Locations:

Ballymun, Dublin, County Dublin, Ireland

Company:

Bórd Scannán na hÉireann

Trivia:

Three days after this movie's UK television broadcast, Sunday (2002) (TV) aired on TV, which chronicled the same event from an alternate perspective.

Quotes:

Ivan Cooper: I just want to say this to the British Government... You know what you've just done, don't you? You've destroyed the civil rights movement, and you've given the IRA the biggest victory it will ever have. All over this city tonight, young men... boys will be joining the IRA, and you will reap a whirlwind.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Ivan Cooper Remembers (2003) (V)

Soundtrack:

Sunday Bloody Sunday

oppression is the same no matter where you go

I only first learned of Bloody Sunday on its thirtieth anniversary, less than a year before this movie came out. But even if you know absolutely nothing about the event, the movie will probably blow you away. We first see how, as Ivan Cooper (James Nesbitt) announces the march, the British army basically says that if the marchers get shot, it's their own fault. Later, a British general explains that there will be violence (meaning that the British army will perpetrate it).

And then, there's the massacre. It may have been the most evil, vicious thing that the British government ever did in Northern Ireland, analogous to what they did in Amritsar, what the Japanese did in Nanking, and what the US did in My Lai. Following the massacre, the army proceeds to plant weapons on people, so as to make them look like terrorists. As Cooper explains: "You have given the IRA its greatest victory." Anyway, "Bloody Sunday" is definitely a movie that I recommend, especially when we claim to be fighting terrorism. The situation in Northern Ireland may be a controversial one, but this movie shows just what it is like to live there and have experienced this event. A very good debut for director Paul Greengrass (currently nominated for Best Director for "United 93").