The Run of the Country

So what did Peter Yates get up to in the long years after Bullitt and Breaking Away? This was his next to last, and shows a practiced directorial hand. The material is familiar but layered, a boy losing his mother and trying to find his manhood, Irish village life and the troubles on the border, a Romeo and Juliet inevitably from feuding clans. But the characters have a reality and depth that makes you content to be in their company, particularly Albert Finney as the father who is a Garda sergeant. That none of the other actors is familiar to me contributes to the air of authenticity. I’m tempted to give another look to The Playboys, also written by Shane Connaughton. The glimpses of Co. Cavan add to my secondhand impressions of Ireland, useful in collaborations with Kevin O’Hara. (1995, IFC/T, n.) *6+*

Speaking of the devil, here’s a shoutout to KO: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/076530984X/qid=1136231782/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/002-9113259-6210469?s=books&v=glance&n=283155