Film: Rory O’Shea Was Here
Cast includes: James McAvoy (Bright Young Things, Band of Brothers), Steven Robertson, Romola Garai (Vanity Fair, I Capture the Castle)
Genre: Comedy/drama
In brief: The film opens in the Carrigmore Home for the severely disabled, near Dublin. Michael, one of the residents with cerebral palsy, has a speech impairment so severe that everyone else has given up trying to understand him. They assume that he’s just retarded. Enter Rory. Rory has the use of two fingers, which allow him to drive his motorized wheelchair… and his mouth, which is always engaged at high volume... in cheeky mode.
One of Rory’s gifts is that he can understand Michael perfectly, and they soon become inseparable friends. After an adventure in Dublin, when the two manage to talk their way into a disco and stay out all night, Rory convinces Michael to help him pursue a dream… living independently. Eventually they do escape Carrigmore and are finally free to make their own decisions, such as hiring a personal assistant based on her looks rather than her training. But life continues to throw obstacles their way. Rory and Michael face every obstacle in their own unique way.
You would expect this obviously non-main-stream story to be depressing. Not so. It’s a fun, yet touching story with enough laughs to pull you in. You really care about the characters, and their stories takes you to the serious emotional drama that’s at the core of the film. You’re truly taken with these two characters and find yourself seeing past their disabilities.
3 popped kernels
Popped kernels for fun characters, in spite of the serious subject matter. Good script and acting.
