In the Name of the Father (film)

Infobox Film | name = In the Name of the Father


caption = original film poster
director = Jim Sheridan
producer = Jim Sheridan
Gabriel Byrne (executive producer)
writer = Jim Sheridan
Terry George
starring = Daniel Day-Lewis
Pete Postlethwaite
Emma Thompson
music =
cinematography = Peter Biziou
editing = Gerry Hambling
distributor = Universal Pictures
released = flagicon|Ireland December 12 1993 (premiere)
flagicon|UK 13 December, 1993 (Belfast only)
flagicon|USA 29 December, 1993 (limited)
flagicon|Canada 21 January, 1994
flagicon|UK 11 February, 1994
flagicon|Australia 3 March, 1994
runtime = 133 min.
language = English
budget =
gross = $65,796,862 (worldwide)
preceded_by =
followed_by =
imdb_id = 0107207

"In the Name of the Father" is a 1993 film directed by Jim Sheridan based on the true life story of the Guildford Four, four people falsely convicted of the IRA's Guildford pub bombing which killed 4 off-duty British soldiers and a civilian. The screenplay was adapted by Terry George and Jim Sheridan from the autobiography"Proved Innocent" by Gerry Conlon.

Plot

Gerry Conlon (Daniel Day-Lewis) and his friend Paul Hill (John Lynch), fed up with life in IRA-era Belfast, move to London and join the hippie scene. They hook up with a bunch of spaced-out hippies squatting in a derelict flat. There they meet Carole Richardson and Paddy Armstrong. Hanging out in a London park after a fight with their flatmates, Hill and Conlon meet a homeless man named Charlie Burke in a park, who claims the bench they are sitting on belongs to him. While the two talk to Burke on the park bench, an explosion is heard. Conlon steals money from the apartment of a prostitute who drops her keys on the sidewalk outside her house. A fellow squatter drops a hint to the police that Gerry and Paul, being Irish, may be involved in the bombing, and they are arrested.

Britain's newly-passed new anti-terror laws enable the police to hold suspects for 7 days without charge. During this time, Gerry and Paul are subjected to torture until they confess. The four principal defendants (Hill, Conlon, Armstrong and Richardson) are sentenced to 14-30 years in jail. From their prison cell, Gerry and his father Giuseppe (Pete Postlethwaite), who is sentenced along with him as part of the Maguire Seven, try to appeal. Giuseppe's health continues to worsen while in prison. In the meantime, the police arrest IRA member Joe McAndrew (Don Baker) who admits to the Guildford bombing. The police ignore his confession and the Guildford Four remain in prison.

Meanwhile, solicitor Gareth Peirce (Emma Thompson) begins to investigate the case in the police archives, after receiving Giuseppe's letters of appeal for assistance, believing that Gerry, his father, and Gerry's friends are innocent. Fortuitously, on a day the original archives clerk is sick, she asks for the file of Conlon. The replacement clerk asks "Which Conlon? Giuseppe or Gerard?" Realising the situation, after only having had access to Giuseppe's file, she requests Gerry Conlon's file. The Gerry Conlon file contains statements and photographs clipped together with a note that says "not to be shown to the defence". This material provides the accused with a solid alibi and in 1989 the court is forced to release all four (Giuseppi passed away in prison nine years prior). On leaving the courthouse, Gerry states that he will continue to fight injustice "in the name of his father."

Cast

*Daniel Day-Lewis as Gerry Conlon
*Pete Postlethwaite as Giuseppe Conlon
*John Lynch as Paul Hill
*Mark Sheppard as Paddy Armstrong
*Beatie Edney as Carole Richardson
*Emma Thompson as Gareth Peirce
*Don Baker as Joe McAndrew
*Corin Redgrave as Inspector Robert Dixon
*Frank Harper as Ronnie Smalls

Controversies

The film was controversial on its release due to the script significantly deviating from actual historical events. For example, Conlon and his father were never imprisoned together as in the film, and the reasons given for Conlon's eventual release are also fictionalised. Emma Thompson's character is a composite of several lawyers who worked on the case, and she did not appear in court as shown in the film, her clients being represented there by a barrister.

Awards

"In the Name of the Father" was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Actor in a Leading Role (Daniel Day-Lewis), Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Pete Postlethwaite), Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Emma Thompson), Best Director, Best Film Editing, Best Picture and Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium.

oundtrack

The soundtrack of the film includes the song "You Made Me the Thief of Your Heart" performed by Sinéad O'Connor and written by Bono, Gavin Friday, and Maurice Seezer.

Filming locations

* Dublin Docklands, Dublin, Ireland (used for opening Belfast scenes)
* Sheriff Street, Dublin, Ireland (Sheriff Street flats complex (now demolished) used for riot scene)
* Kilmainham Gaol, Dublin, Ireland (as Park Royal Prison)
* Liverpool, UK (used for many London scenes)

See also

* Guildford Four and Maguire Seven
* Birmingham Six
* Prevention of Terrorism Act
* Gareth Peirce

External links

*

###@@@KEY@@@###succession box
title=Golden Bear winner
years=1994
before="Woman Sesame Oil Maker"
tied with "The Wedding Banquet"
after="L'Appât"