Belfast review: Kenneth Branagh finds happiness amid a conflicted city

Given that Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast film is set against the backdrop of the Troubles you could be forgiven for expecting it to be more gritty and explosive.
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Instead Branagh, whose family left north Belfast in 1969 to escape the conflict, has stuck to his own happy memories of the city where he spent the first nine years of his life.

Branagh’s story is told through Buddy, played by Jude Hill – a young lad who looks forward to trips to the cinema, likes spending time philosophising with his granddad, and who needs to work out a way to get the attention of the smartest girl in his class who he has a crush on.

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What Branagh’s memories of his place of birth give the audience is a wholesome story of a family overcoming their struggles, which do become all the more difficult because of the violence which has arrived on their doorstep.

(L to R) Caitriona Balfe as "Ma", Jamie Dornan as "Pa", Judi Dench as "Granny", Jude Hill as "Buddy", and Lewis McAskie as "Will" in director Kenneth Branagh's BELFAST, a Focus Features release. Credit : Rob Youngson / Focus Features(L to R) Caitriona Balfe as "Ma", Jamie Dornan as "Pa", Judi Dench as "Granny", Jude Hill as "Buddy", and Lewis McAskie as "Will" in director Kenneth Branagh's BELFAST, a Focus Features release. Credit : Rob Youngson / Focus Features
(L to R) Caitriona Balfe as "Ma", Jamie Dornan as "Pa", Judi Dench as "Granny", Jude Hill as "Buddy", and Lewis McAskie as "Will" in director Kenneth Branagh's BELFAST, a Focus Features release. Credit : Rob Youngson / Focus Features

The film starts with the jollity of a tight-knit terraced neighbourhood being shattered by a riot intended to intimidate Catholics into moving out.

Given the starting point, the threat of violence looms large for the entire film but it is not a well which Branagh taps too often. Instead he celebrates togetherness rather than division, helped by a stand-out cast including Ciaran Hinds, Judi Dench, Caitriona Balfe and Jamie Dornan.

There are bits of dialogue reminiscent of the Derry Girls scene listing the differences between the two religions that bring a chuckle.

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For example when Buddy, who doesn’t want to go to church, points out: “But Daddy if we were Catholics we could not go to church, then every once in a wee while we could do it and confess. And then they’d have to tell us we were forgiven and we wouldn’t have to go in again for ages.”

The film does have a certain feel-good factor which belies its backdrop.

Ultimately, it could mean that Branagh’s heartwarming story, aided by an uplifting soundtrack from Belfast’s own Van Morrison, is better received internationally rather than locally, where we’ve grown accustomed to expecting the worst to happen.

Whether you’re watching the film in Belfast, Beirut or Boston it is hard to find fault in the film’s visual integrity – its wonderful black and white imagery is captivating on the silver screen.

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The often dark Northern Irish sense of humour is also given a good showcase, like when Buddy is trying to solve a mathematical problem with his granddad who tells him to make his numbers indistinct so his teacher will give him the benefit of the doubt.

“But there’s only one right answer,” says Buddy.

His Pop replies: “If that were true, son, people wouldn’t be blowing themselves up all across town.”

• Belfast opens in the UK on Friday, January 21, though some special screenings of the film are taking place in Belfast this evening (Thursday)

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