Belfast (2021)

Belfast (2021). Belfast: Directed by Kenneth Branagh. With Jude Hill, Lewis McAskie, Caitriona Balfe, Jamie Dornan. A young boy and his working class family experience the tumultuous late 1960s.

“I look forward to everything Kenneth Branagh does as an actor, director, writer, etc. His range is on par with the greatest directors ever. However, Belfast is in a league of its own. There is a personal intimacy to the story without it resorting into clichés. Too often mother characters are made out to be shrews while the father characters are made out to be distant and uncaring. In Belfast, the characters are flawed as all human beings are without going over the top. There is conflict within the family without it being overplayed while they struggle with the discord going on around them.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThere is a gritty authenticity to Belfast. Yes, there is violence . . . But, it has been dosed out in a quantity to help the viewer attenuate to what was going on and not eat up the minutes with bits and bites of storyline thrown in for effect.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eBelfast is well cast and Jude Hill as Buddy is wonderful. This movie isnu0026#39;t intended to explain the Catholic-Protestant conflict as much as it focuses on the impact to a family and small community.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eBelfast is subtle storytelling without resorting to so many things films rely on (e.g., CGI, sex, violence, etc.) to keep the audience entertained. Many will not applaud the restraint Branagh demonstrates. Itu0026#39;s a movie for a cerebral audience that can appreciate storytelling without special effects or gratuitous trappings.”