maryroisin, 16
4 out of 5
- By
- maryroisin, 16
- Date
- 2010-03-15 18:11:02
In the Name of the father, is a 1993 film, based on the true life story of the guildford four, four pople falsely convicted of the IRA 's Gulidford pub bombing, which kiled several people. Gerry Conolan the unfairly accused leader for the bombing was played by Daniel Day-lewis and this actor convincingly portrayed the role of Gerry extremley well. Gerry who was born in Northern Ireland, was a small thief, however when he moved to London he was wrongly accused of the IRA bombing, even though he had an alabi on the night. Himself and four other friends were coerced into confessing their guilt, by writing a false statement, with one even saying the police held a gun in his mouth and were going to kill him if he didnt confess. This shows the injustice Gerry and his family had to endure at the hands of the British police and their side of the story story is told in a very powerful way making the audience feel commpassion towards the wrongly accused and also both angry and horrified at the British Justice System. Even though they told the court of their innocence they were still given a sentence of 30 years. Gerrys father-Giuseppe, and some of his other family were also convicted as they had been accused of being accessories to the bombing. During their time spent in prison, Giuseppe works with a very compassionate lawyer- Gareth Pierce to start a campaign to prove their collective inncoence, however very sadly Giuseppe dies shortly after in his cell, this is a very moving scene as it shows Gerry trying to wake him, however he has already died. Further on from this the lawyer extracts new information from the investigation which she uses as evidence to prove they are innocent. So in court after 15 years of prisonment for something they did not do, their names are finally cleared. The end scene of the film was very emotional as after 15 years, Giuseppe had died in prison, due to the stress of the trial and Gerrys speech about campaigning until his fathers name was cleared was particularly potent.
So overall I beieve this film is extremley moving and powerful, displaying the horrific miscarriage of justice to many innocent people and showing the audience how corrupt the british legal system was at that time.
Although some of the scenes in the film were quite distressing, i thought it was thought provoking and throughlly enjoyed it, i would definitely recommend this film.
Katie, 15
4 out of 5
- By
- Katie, 15
- Date
- 2010-03-15 12:39:13
In the Name of the Father is a film based on a true story which is set in the 1970's. During that time many people in Northern Ireland were arrested because it was thought they were a member of or a supporter of the IRA, who were responsible for many bombing attacks at the time. The IRA wanted to end British rule in Northern Ireland in order to create a united Ireland, they thought this way they could improve life for the Irish.
The film tells the story of Gerry Conlon and some of his close family and friends who were accused at the time of carrying out the Guildford Pub Bombing, which resulted in the death of five people.
After spending some time in a squat with fellow Irish people in London, Gerry and his friend Paul Hill, who had travelled with him on the boat from Northern Ireland to London, found themselves in a park on the night of the Guildford bombing. They sat on a bench for some time when a homeless man approached them, and said the bench they were sitting on was his, showing them his initials, which he had carved into the bench.
Gerry and Paul talked with the homeless man for some time, they were still there when the Guildford bomb went off, and so couldn't possibly have been present.
Shortly after this we see the police invade the squat in which Gerry was staying, and arrest everybody there. One of the men they arrest tells them that Gerry had also been at the squat, and as he had since returned to his family in Ireland the police arrested him there in his family home.
From this point the film tells of the injustice Gerry and his family endured at the hands of the British police. Their story is told in a very powerful way which manages to tamper with the emotions of the audience, making them both angry and horrified at the British Justice System.
Gerry’s father, Giuseppe Conlon, arrives in England shortly after Gerry is arrested to attempt to clear his name and find a lawyer willing to take on his case. He visits Gerry’s auntie, Annie McGuire, who Gerry had visited with Paul on his first visit to Ireland, whilst there the house was invaded by police, who arrested everybody present, including Annie’s two teenage sons, claiming they could keep them detained for up to seven days under the Prevention of Terrorism Act.
We begin to see the poor treatment these people endured from the British police when Gerry is tortured and blackmailed into signing a confession, he is told that if he fails to admit to the Guildford Pub Bombings, they will kill his father, Giuseppe Conlon. Gerry had no choice but to sign the confession and neither did Paul Hill or Carol Richardson.
In court Gerry, Paul and two others were found guilty for the bombing, and his father, auntie and her two sons were also found guilty of supplying and making the bomb. A forensic scientist claimed that he had found traces of bomb materials in Annie McGuire’s washing up gloves, as well as in other parts of her kitchen in her London home.
Gerry was wrongly sentenced to life imprisonment, along with Carol, Paul and his father. Annie received 14 years; her two teenage sons got 4 and 5 years.
Gerry is seen leading a campaign to clear their names as ‘The Guildford Four’ from prison, keeping the fight for justice alive outside, with the help of his British lawyer, Mrs. Pearce and his family on the outside.
I think the reaction of the public to the case was shown very well in the film, as they are shown to be completely outraged and in full support of Gerry and his release. The government felt as though having somebody in prison who they claimed was responsible for the bombings would set the public’s mind to rest, and discourage support for the IRA. However imprisoning innocent people did nothing to help their cause as many people start to support the IRA due to the corrupt legal system in England, they now more than ever did not want Ireland controlled by the English.
I think the film shows really well how people come together in order to support justice and shows just how corrupt the legal system really was. The end of the film was particularly dramatic as after 15 years, Giuseppe had died in prison, due to the stress of the trial, and had been denied compassionate leave by the heartless senior figures in the legal system. Annie and her sons were now out of prison and had lost large portions of their adult life due to injustice, and now finally they would be acquitted of the crimes.
The Guildford Four’s names were finally cleared and the public were in full support outside of court. Gerry’s speech about fighting until his father’s name was cleared was particularly powerful and heart wrenching.
I think the film portrayed really well the case of the people involved, but I was shocked at the truths about the legal system in the 1970’s as I had no idea it could ever have been so corrupt.
