In The Name Of The Father

Criminology was one of my favorite classes in school mainly because I got to get a look behind all the bullshit of the justice system, well hopefully it was honest. Still I got to read some great books about people who had been imprisoned for crimes they did not commit. It was sad to realize how many people had been set up under false pretenses and had to stay in prison for years even though they were innocent. Even more than that it really showed me that I couldn't trust cops or anyone in the justice system at any time. Now I am not trying to say everyone is innocent all the time, but there have been so many innocent people that have served jail time that it could really happen to anybody. So then we throw Daniel Day Lewis in the mix and we have In The Name Of The Father which came out in 1993. It truly is weird seeing a younger Daniel Day Lewis and thinking about all the fame and honors waiting ahead for him. He teams up here with Jim Sheridan, the man who directed My Left Foot, so things look good.

The year is 1974 and at the Guildford Pub in London has been attacked by a terrorist bombing all while London and the IRA are constantly fighting in the streets. Unfortunately for Gerry Conlon (Daniel Day Lewis) he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Gerry gets arrested for the crimes and after days of senseless physical and emotional abuse is forced to sign a confession to the crimes. Then in court Gerry, his father, family, and friends all get charged for terrorism, Gerry specifically getting 30 years to life. They face their time but along the way meet the man who actually bombed the Guildford Pub and a lawyer looking to help fight for their innocence. Gerry must find the strength to fight for his family, his name, and for justice.

So by now everyone know when you have Daniel Day Lewis on a film your going to be in for a good ride. He sure does put on a good show here as well, significantly in the last third of the film. He does just what you expect here, great acting, great accent, add power and depth to the film, and more importantly really dominates the film. He is the best part of the film without a doubt and the reason to watch the film in my opinion. Though the most important part of this film is the relationship between Gerry and his father played by brilliant Pete Postlethwaite and this was some incredible chemistry between the two actors. They really brought the emotion to their relationship and more importantly made it feel real. In each conversation we can feel the history of their relationship full of tension and arguments thanks to the acting. We don't have to be told what they have been through we can feel it through their performances which is a lot harder than it sounds.

I do have one major flaw with this film though and that is the movie should have been longer and more focused. There were lots of moments throughout the film that I was wondering why we were focusing on this and not of other characters or plot points. For example, there is a lot of focus in prison on Gerry teaming up with the actual bomber of the Guildford pub and we see their rise in the prison system. Instead I wish more focus had been put on Gerry working with his lawyer, or Gerry spending time with his dad, and even seeing seeing how some of the other innocent people handled their prison time or interrogations. Instead I felt like a lot of time was wasted on scenes that we didn't need and that time could've been used better. The end is a great example as we see Gerry walk out and make a big speech to the crowd about justice but it ends before we can ever get into it.

Still this movie is very enjoyable and takes a great look at the corrupt justice system that people all voer the world face every single day. Emma Thompson does a great job with the little screen time she gets, she should have gotten more. I also found the direction to be really good, I enjoyed watching the line motifs throughout the film but was also glad to see the movie focus on Gerry and his father instead of focus on the injustice of it all. The characters are what make the message have a bigger impact and luckily Sheridan knew that as a director. Also this movie really knows how to get the audience soaked into the story, I know I was celebrating and cheering at the end of the film.

Overall I would suggest this film to a lot of people for the great story portraying corruption in the justice system while also having a character driven film. It is a lot of fun, emotionally driven, and great performances are seen all around. While the film does have pacing and focus issues they certainly do not get in the way of enjoying this film.

3.25/4