Review of Into the West

Introduction

The story of Oisin and Tir na nOg is one of the most famous and poignant in Irish mythology. Of course, Ireland being a land of storytellers and embellishers, there are many variations of the tale. Here`s how I heard it at school -

Oisin was hunting one day when a magnificent white horse came galloping towards him. A beautiful young girl with with flowing golden hair was on its back. She reined the horse in beside him and spoke to Oisin. "I am Princess Niamh, I come from Tir na nOg to take you, Oisin, back with me and become your wife."

She described her land and promised that he would have countless cattle and sheep, warriors to command and the gift of eternal youth (Tir na nOg literally means "Land of Youth"). Hearing of such wonders Oisin agreed to go with her and mounted the horse behind her.

The animal galloped away, crossing land and sea, never stopping day or night until they arrived at the golden place of Tir na nOg. The king and queen, Niamh`s parents, welcomed Oisin as their future son-in-law. Oision lived with Niamh for a long time but eventually got homesick and wanted to go back and visit his friends and family. Niamh agreed that he could go but warned him, that on no account should he set foot on Ireland`s soil. To assist him on his journey, Niamh lent Oisin her horse - a magnificent pure white animal.

In Ireland Oisin found that there was no trace of his family or his friends. The great fortresses of his youth were now no more than mounds of earth. He did not understand that each single day in Tir na nOg was equal to a full year in Ireland. This meant that in reality it had been a thousand years since he had left his native land.

One day, while riding through Sligo he saw some men struggling to lift a heavy rock and offered to help. Bending down from his horse to grip the rock, the strain broke the saddle and Oisin fell to the ground. Immediately he turned into a withered old man and died.

And nobody lived happily ever after. We can be a fairly morbid bunch too. Of course, there are various points to the story - be happy with what you have, don`t be longing for what you left behind, let people push their own rock, etc.


Anyway, what`s that got to do with the film? Quite a bit as it happens.

John Reilly (Gabriel Byrne) is a broken man. He used to be King of the Travellers but, having lost his wife in childbirth, he has retreated from the travelling life into a bottle. Worse, he has abandoned the heritage and tradition of his people and is living in a flat in Dublin`s Ballymun estate (the complete antithesis of Dublin`s Georgian elegance). His two sons hate "the towers" and want to live free like their people and like the cowboys from their favourite films.

His father finds a mysterious white horse on a beach and it follows him back to Dublin. The horse quickly bonds with the boys and they name him, "Tir na nOg". Tir na nOg starts living in the flat with the boys and this causes trouble with the neighbours. The Gardai (police) are called and take the horse away. A corrupt policeman (Brendan Gleeson) sells the horse to a rich businessman and Tir na nOg becomes a promising show jumper.

Moping around in their horse`s absence, the boys happen to see Tir na nOg on TV, dash around to the stadium and steal him away.

This starts a chase (cops, businessman and John Reilly) across Ireland, with the boys fleeing to the mythical "West". However, there starts to be some doubt over whether the boys are taking the horse or whether the horse is taking the boys.

Video

The video is presented in an Anamorphic 1:1.78 transfer and, for a fairly low profile release, it looks impressive. Aside from a little grain and the occasional sparkle, there is little to complain about.

The cinematography is superb, showing Ireland (or part of it) as it really is while giving it a patina of mystery. The boys` journey takes them from the slums of Ballymun in Dublin, across country and to the Cliffs of Moher in the West. The various locations are filmed accurately and evocatively.

Special mention has to go the way in which the horse was filmed. At all times the power and presence of the animal was conveyed while giving it a mysterious, almost otherworldly, air.

Audio

Audio is presented in DD 2.0 and sounds fine. It isn`t exceptional by any means but equally there is little to fault. Dialogue is clear (although some people may have a little difficulty with the authentic Irish accents). The music is atmospheric (with Celtic influences) and well reproduced. The sound effects, especially that of Tir na nOg galloping, are effective.

Overall, a decent soundtrack and while a DD 5.1 mix would have been appreciated, it isn`t essential.

Features

Some filmographies and a still gallery. That`s all.

Conclusion

I avoided "Into The West" when it hit the cinemas in 1992. I have a passionate dislike for twee Oirish films and felt that this was one of those.

Watching it now on DVD, I realize that I was utterly wrong. This is a super film. In fact it is a super Irish film. It captures the country and people perfectly. It is romantic without being overly sentimental and is utterly authentic.

The script is great with a real feel for Irish dialogue, direction is assured from Jim Sheridan and the cast is uniformly excellent. Gabriel Byrne is super as the disillusioned John Reilly and Brendan Gleeson is suitably menacing. Ciarán Fitzgerald and Rúaidhrí Conroy are especially good as the John`s two sons - Ossie and Tito - being appealing without an iota of cuteness. Of course, the real star is the horse and it is truly magnificent as it gallops through the waves, mane echoing the foam on the sea.

The film is thoroughly modern, yet firmly rooted in Irish heritage. A bit like Ireland itself, I guess.

The film comes highly recommended. The disk is a bit underspecified.