The Mighty Celt

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07/01/2020 Thought this was a "coming of age" movie in which a young boy saves a dog and patches his family together. Good story, until the dog's throat is realistically slashed and we watched it bleed to death. Pointless. Turned it off. See more 01/17/2015 A little hard to watch because its so sad, but really great message/story and acting by all. See more 03/23/2013 A reasonably straight forward real life drama with no-nonsense attitude. It might possibly narrow it's audience due to the strong Irish accent, but this is one of the many important ingredients that make, what could be a very average film - really good. Some inspired British style camera work together with a Dub-Celt soundtrack really give this film it's feel. And it all seems plausible, but not predictable. What does work particularly well is how each character and sub plot seem carefully balanced with their own importance in the storyline, nothing is wasted or filling time. Natural performances from all the small cast and a surprisingly good combo of Carlyle & Anderson adds a close personal feel and keeps this story easy to contain. If you don't mind a bit of swearing and kids smoking then this film is great for all ages and generations. See more 09/10/2012 Low budget indeed, but worked with intelligence, feeling and genuine talent. A sincere and clean view towards the relationship between dogs and humans. See more 05/31/2012 A delightful, yet powerful story. Touching. Heartbreaking. Well done...really could use some subtitles, though. See more 01/29/2011 Tyone McKenna portrays Donal, a Belfast teenager who lives with his single mother, Kate (Gillian Anderson) and has an after school job working for local greyhound trainer, Good Joe (Ken Stott). When Donal sees Joe preparing to kill one of the greyhounds becuase he thinks the dog will only win the races it wants to win, Donal offers to train the dog. A bond between boy and dog ensues and after naming him The Mighty Celt after a character in Irish mythology, Donal strikes a deal with Joe... he can have the dog as long as it wins three races, otherwise it belongs to Joe to do with as he wishes. Alongside this, a figure from the town's past reappears in the form of O (Robert Carlyle) and enters Donal's and Kate's lives. When Joe becomes jealous of Donal's relationship with O, he goes back on his arrangement which leads to tensions exploding between Donal, O and Joe. I found out about this film when I visited Belfast roughly 18 months ago. I went on a guided pub walk and visited one of the locations used in the film (where O and Kate go out for a drink). Once I found this out, I had to get the film and although it is a quiet drama which doesn't set out to change the world, it is a good drama. Gillian Anderson delivers another good performance as Kate and her scenes with Tyrone McKenna are believable of those of a mother and her son. Her scenes with Carlyle are also effective as he tries to break down the barriers of woman whose previous relationship has broken down and whose brother was killed in a paramilitary operation involving O. Robert Carlyle is solid as usual in the role of O. He underplays the character and you do see a man who has become sickened by the violence of the "Troubles" after years on the run, of a man who has basically lost touch with a world that's moved on and a man who is now at peace with himself. Ken Stott is cast as an effective antagonist in the role of Good Joe and it's apparent from the first frames of the film that Joe is anything but good and Stott is powerful in the handling of his final scenes in the film. But it's Tyrone McKenna who is the star of the film as Donal. He effectively builds an on screen rapport with all three leads and with "The Celt". As I said it's a quiet drama but a solid drama which asks a very pertinent question for today's society towards the film's conclusion, who is the braver man - the one who embraces violence or the one who walks away. See more Read all reviews

The Mighty Celt

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