Two boyhood best friends are divided by 25 years of misunderstanding amidst the escalating conflict in Northern Ireland. The two boys’ lives take very different paths until Joe returns for the first time to his homeland with his 24-year-old daughter, Patricia. In his absence, Paddy married Joe’s former fiancée Mary. What happened all those years ago? Can old wounds be healed? The answer is hilarious and moving in equal parts.
“Jim” (Ciarán Hinds) arrives into Northern Ireland from San Francisco with his daughter “Patricia” (Kerry Condon) and heads towards his childhood home where “Paddy” (Conleth Hill) is eking out an existence balancing his welfare payments with the proceeds from some illicit shellfishing with his pals on the local shore. Whilst they are taking in the view, “Jim” explains to “Patricia” just how the relationship with “Paddy” started and how, after a bit of girlfriend issues and with the arrival of the troubles, it all ended. Twenty five years have passed since and the question is: can they reconcile or is it all too late? It’s probably ten minutes too long this, but it does liven up nicely towards the end as “Paddy mistakes his new visitor, from afar, for the unemployment inspector and we have a scene on the sand straight out of “Blazing Saddles”! In a nation wracked with tragedy, this is quite a poignant film about the potential for and power of forgiveness, and in a typically Irish fashion - it’s not straightforward nor without some humour, either.