Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning memoir by Frank McCourt, Angela's Ashes is an alternately funny and heartbreaking look at growing up in Ireland. Born in Brooklyn, NY, young Frank (Joe Breen) moves at an early age to Limerick, Ireland, with his parents Angela (Emily Watson) and Malachy (Robert Carlyle), who have been unable to support their family in America and are hoping for better prospects in their home country. But things hardly improve once they settle in Limerick; as McCourt puts it,
"Worse than the ordinary miserable childhood is the miserable Irish childhood. Worse yet is the miserable Irish Catholic childhood." Illness and death are commonplace in Limerick, and Malachy's drinking and inability to hold a job make matters worse. Angela's Ashes was directed by Alan Parker, who previously looked at Irish life in The Commitments (1991); Laura Jones wrote the screenplay. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
There's a compelling momentum to Angela's Ashes, Alan Parker's very faithful, if poetically subordinate, version of McCourt's book, which imposed elegance on squalor and intelligence on the indolence cultivated by poverty.
Fantastic film. Could watch this over and over again. The cast were fantastic and the acting was even better. A poignant story that had you reaching for the tissues because you were either laughing too hard or crying.
June 23, 2011
Bethany Murphy
Super Reviewer
I'm pretty interested in reading the book now. As much as goes on in this film, I can't imagine it picked up on all the wonderful subtleties you can put in a book.It's not an easy film to watch, but all the difficult parts are worth it to see the beautiful moments. They're especially powerful if you've ever, like Frank
or his mom, had to seriously juggle strong religious devotion with harrowing life situations.
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