Borstal Boy

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source: Borstal Boy

Borstal Boy

I admit to not having yet read the book on which this film is based and I'm willing to concede that the book may well be far better than the film; as alluded to in other reviews. That being said, I found this film touching, funny, controversial, unique, all those adjectives and more. The casting of Danny Dyer as a homosexual sailor in the 1940s really shows his versatility as an actor and I believe this must have been a challenging and rewarding part. The film deals with issues that are taboo even by today's standards and although the narrative can be at times overly sentimental, these scenes are strangely refreshing and poignant. Danny Dyer has some great lines and one hilarious scene involving a football. "Borstal Boy" is unprecedented in its approach to controversial issues and makes for a film well worth watching.

Two brilliant but under rated performances by Shawn Hatosy as Brendan Behan and Danny Dyer as Charlie Millwall.This film captures the pithiness of the original play but invokes the intense friendships of an earlier era when emotions such as these had no outlet which was positive.But the love and the pathos which is portrayed by these two brilliant actors is to be recommended.It is a travesty that such a film could not garner the appreciation it deserves on the world stage.The location is filmed just outside of Dublin, so it has the predominant colours of grey and green which enhance the drabness of the borstal scenes.Michael York although past his best, puts in a creditable performance as the Governor of the borstal.This film is a must see for aficionados of Danny Dyer.

I honestly didn't think of bumping into an underrated Irish film like this and be so glad to have watched it! It's pretty well done with Shawn Hatosy putting on a thick Dublin Irish accent and Danny Dyer as the lover was pretty brilliant too. When they kissed, it just melted your heart with warm, so rosemantic haha! I never heard of the word "Borstal" before as a youth detention centre until I watched this movie just yesterday! Funny how you live in Ireland from the day you were born, you never really get to hear the ol Irish words! Its sad that the real Brendan Behan died at such a young age at 41, it's just remarkable that he had only a short life to live! Poor fella shouldn't have been killing himself with the drink and try to look after his diabetes but unfortunately, there wasn't much to be done as it was already too late for him! RIP Brilliant movie, actors and story, 9/10 it deserves!

I saw an advance screening of this film last week and had the pleasure of speaking with Peter Sheridan afterwards. Simply put, it is the story of a young Brendan Behan who discovers love, friendship and tragedy whilst imprisoned in an English reform school. Although he refuses to denounce his IRA affiliations, Behan is eventually released after his actions during a strange series of events at the school reveal his true and most upstanding character. The movie was very touching and well acted by an international cast. Sheridan made some daring casting choices (The Irish Behan is played by an American, Shawn Hatosy,) but the results make for a captivating film. Go and see Borstal Boy.

As others have mentioned, the dialog was a real obstacle at times -- I couldn't even tell if the dockside conversation at the end was English or Gaelic. In most any other film, this would have had me at the point of surrender before reaching even the halfway point. But the story shines through here. And while parts are admittedly improbable or inaccurate, this didn't distract one bit. In the shocking final newsreel scene, I was just as distraught as Hatosy's character -- I replayed the scene at least 10 times, each time quite undone its emotional wallop. High marks to Hatosy, Dyer, and Inglesby, whose other work I will now purposefully seek out.