Hunger (2008 Film)
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''Hunger'' is a 2008
historical drama film A historical drama (also period drama, period piece or just period) is a dramatic work set in the past, usually used in the context of film and television, which presents historical events and characters with varying degrees of fiction such as c ...
about the 1981 Irish hunger strike. It was directed by
Steve McQueen Terrence Stephen McQueen (March 24, 1930November 7, 1980) was an American actor. His antihero persona, emphasized during the height of counterculture of the 1960s, 1960s counterculture, made him a top box office draw for his films of the late ...
(in his feature directorial debut) and starred Michael Fassbender, Liam Cunningham, and Liam McMahon. It premiered at the
2008 Cannes Film Festival The 61st Annual Cannes Film Festival took place from 14 to 25 May 2008. American actor and filmmaker Sean Penn served as jury president for the main competition. French filmmaker Laurent Cantet won the Palme d'Or, the festival's top prize, for th ...
, winning the prestigious
Caméra d'Or The Caméra d'Or ("''Golden Camera''") is an award of the Cannes Film Festival for the best first feature film presented in one of the Cannes selections (Official Selection, Directors' Fortnight or Critics' Week). The prize was created in 1978 Ca ...
award for first-time filmmakers. It went on to win the Sydney Film Prize at the
Sydney Film Festival The Sydney Film Festival is an annual competitive film festival held in Sydney, Australia, usually over 12 days in June. A number of awards are given, the top one being the Sydney Film Prize. , the festival's director is Nashen Moodley. Histo ...
, the Grand Prix of the Belgian Syndicate of Cinema Critics, best picture from the
Evening Standard British Film Awards The Evening Standard British Film Awards were established in 1973 by London's '' Evening Standard'' newspaper. The Standard Awards is the only ceremony "dedicated to British and Irish talent", judged by a panel of "top UK critics". Each ceremony ...
, and received two
BAFTA The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...
nominations, winning one. The film was also nominated for eight awards at the
2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...
IFTAs, winning six at the event. The film stars Fassbender as Bobby Sands, the
Provisional Irish Republican Army The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), officially known as the Irish Republican Army (IRA; ) and informally known as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary force that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland ...
(IRA) member who led the second IRA hunger strike and participated in the no wash protest (led by Brendan "The Dark" Hughes) in which
Irish republican Irish republicanism () is the political movement for an Irish republic, void of any British rule. Throughout its centuries of existence, it has encompassed various tactics and identities, simultaneously elective and militant and has been both w ...
prisoners tried to regain political status after it had been revoked by the British government in 1976. It outlines events in the
Maze Prison HM Prison Maze (previously Long Kesh Detention Centre, and known colloquially as the Maze or H-Blocks) was a prison in Northern Ireland that was used to house paramilitary prisoners during the Troubles from August 1971 to September 2000. On 15 ...
in the period leading up to the hunger strike and its aftermath.


Plot

Prison officer Raymond Lohan prepares to leave for work, cleaning his wounded knuckles and checking his car for bombs. At the Maze prison, he puts on his uniform and ignores his comrades. A new IRA inmate, Davey Gillen, is admitted and categorised as a "non-conforming prisoner" for his refusal to wear the prison uniform outfit. He is sent to his cell naked except for a blanket. His cellmate, Gerry Campbell, has smeared the walls with excrement from floor to ceiling as part of the no wash protest. Gerry's girlfriend sneaks a radio in by wrapping it and storing it in her vagina. Prison officers forcibly and violently remove the prisoners from their cells and beat them before pinning them down to cut their long hair and beards, grown as part of the no-wash protest. The prisoners resist, with prisoner Bobby Sands spitting into Lohan's face. He responds by punching Sands in the face and then swings again, only to miss and punch the wall, causing his knuckles to bleed. He cuts Sands' hair and beard; the men throw Sands in the bathtub and scrub him clean before hauling him away again. Later, the prisoners are taken out of their cells and given second-hand civilian clothing. The guards snicker as they hand the clothes to the prisoners, who respond, after Sands' initial action, by tearing up the clothes and wrecking their cells. A large number of riot police enter the prison on a truck. The prisoners are hauled from their cells and forced to run the gauntlet between the lines of riot police, during which they are abused and beaten with batons. Lohan and several of his colleagues then probe prisoners' rectums and mouths, using the same pair of latex gloves for each man. Lohan visits his catatonic mother in a retirement home. He is shot in the back of the head by an Irish Republican Army member and dies slumped onto his mother's lap. Sands is visited by
Father A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. A biological fat ...
Dominic Moran and discusses the morality of a
hunger strike A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance where participants fasting, fast as an act of political protest, usually with the objective of achieving a specific goal, such as a policy change. Hunger strikers that do not take fluids are ...
. Sands tells the priest about a trip to
County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county of the Republic of Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is the northernmost county of Ireland. The county mostly borders Northern Ireland, sharing only a small b ...
where he and his friends found a
foal A foal is an equine up to one year old; this term is used mainly for horses, but can be used for donkeys. More specific terms are colt (horse), colt for a male foal and filly for a female foal, and are used until the horse is three or four. Whe ...
by a stream. It had cut itself on the rocks and broken a back leg. Sands tells the priest that he drowned the foal and that although he got into trouble for it, he knew he had done the right thing by ending the animal's suffering. He says he knows what he is doing and what it will do to him but refuses to stand by and do nothing. Sometime later, Bobby is well into his hunger strike, suffering from weeping sores, kidney failure, low blood pressure, and stomach ulcers. While Sands lies in a bath, a large orderly comes in to give his usual orderly a break. The orderly sits next to the tub and shows Bobby his knuckles, which are tattooed with the letters " UDA". Sands tries to stand on his own and eventually does so with all his strength, staring defiantly at the orderly but crumples to the floor with no strength left to stand. The orderly carries him to his room. Sands' parents stay for his final days, his mother being at his side when he dies, 66 days after beginning the strike. A textual epilogue reveals that Sands was elected to the United Kingdom Parliament as MP for Fermanagh and South Tyrone while he was on the hunger strike. Nine other men died with him during the seven-month strike before it was called off, and Republican paramilitary groups murdered 16 prison officers during the protests. Shortly afterward, the British government conceded in one form or another to virtually all of the prisoners' five demands despite never officially granting them political status.


Cast

* Michael Fassbender as Bobby Sands ** Ciaran Flynn as 12-year-old Bobby * Liam Cunningham as Father Dominic Moran * Liam McMahon as Gerry Campbell * Stuart Graham as Raymond Lohan * Brian Milligan as Davey Gillen * Laine Megaw as Mrs Lohan * Karen Hassan as Gerry's girlfriend * Frank McCusker as the Governor * Lalor Roddy as William * Helen Madden as Mrs Sands * Des McAleer as Mr Sands * Geoff Gatt as Bearded man * Rory Mullen as Priest * Ben Peel as Riot Prison Officer Stephen Graves * Helena Bereen as Raymond's mother * Paddy Jenkins as Hitman * Billy Clarke as Chief Medical Officer * B.J. Hogg as Loyalist orderly * Aaron Goldring as Young Bobby's friend


Production

After financing for ''Hunger'' was turned down by the
Irish Film Board Not to be confused with Northern Ireland Screen. Fís Éireann / Screen Ireland, formerly known as Bord Scannán na hÉireann or the Irish Film Board, is Republic of Ireland, Ireland's state development agency for the Irish film, television an ...
, the film was instead co-funded by
Northern Ireland Screen Not to be confused with Screen Ireland. Northern Ireland Screen is the national screen agency for Northern Ireland. The agency's purpose is to promote the development of a sustainable film, animation and television production industry.About Us > ...
, Broadcast Commission of Ireland,
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...
, Film4 Productions, and the Wales Creative IP Fund. In preparation for his role, Michael Fassbender went on a special diet of less than 900 calories a day for ten weeks. After meeting with a nutritionist, he settled on a diet of berries, nuts, and sardines, and underwent periodic medical checks. In an interview with ''The Telegraph'', Fassbender said that he skipped, did yoga, and walked four and a half miles a day, but also added that he had difficulty sleeping, and stopped seeing friends. He also said that the experience made him feel "grateful" and "strong". The film is also notable for an unbroken 17-minute shot, in which a priest played by Liam Cunningham tries to talk Bobby Sands out of his protest. In it, the camera remains in the same position for the duration of the entire shot. To prepare for the scene, Cunningham moved into Michael Fassbender's apartment for a time while they practiced the scene between twelve and fifteen times a day. According to Fassbender, they did only five takes.


Release

''Hunger'' premiered at the
Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...
on 15 May 2008, where it opened the official sidebar section, ''
Un Certain Regard (; 'A Certain Glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films with unusua ...
'', sparking both walkouts and a standing ovation, before screening at the
Sydney Film Festival The Sydney Film Festival is an annual competitive film festival held in Sydney, Australia, usually over 12 days in June. A number of awards are given, the top one being the Sydney Film Prize. , the festival's director is Nashen Moodley. Histo ...
on 7 June, the
Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...
on 6 September, the
New York Film Festival The New York Film Festival (NYFF) is a film festival held every fall in New York City, presented by Film at Lincoln Center. Founded in 1963 by Richard Roud and Amos Vogel with the support of Lincoln Center president William Schuman, NYFF i ...
on 27 September, and the
Chicago International Film Festival The Chicago International Film Festival is an annual film festival held every fall. Founded in 1964 by Michael Kutza, it is the longest-running competitive film festival in North America. Its logo is a stark, black and white close up of the comp ...
on 19 October 2008. The film was released in the United Kingdom and Ireland on 31 October 2008.


Critical reception

On review aggregator
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
, the film has an approval rating of 90% based on 131 reviews, with an average score of 7.80/10. The website's critical consensus states, "Unflinching, uncompromising, vivid and vital, Steve McQueen's challenging debut is not for the faint hearted, but it's still a richly rewarding retelling of troubled times." On
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, the film has a
weighted average The weighted arithmetic mean is similar to an ordinary arithmetic mean (the most common type of average), except that instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others. The ...
score of 82 out of 100, based on 25 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".
Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...
of the ''
Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspaper ...
'' spoke most positively of the piece stating, "Hunger is not about the rights and wrongs of the British in Northern Ireland, but about inhumane prison conditions, the steeled determination of IRA members like Bobby Sands, and a rock and a hard place."
Peter Travers Peter Joseph Travers (born June 27, 1943) is an American film critic, journalist, and television presenter. He reviews films for ABC News and previously served as a movie critic for ''People'' and ''Rolling Stone''. Travers also hosts the film i ...
of ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'', regarded the film highly and said: "Shockingly immediate and philosophically reflective, Hunger is an indelibly moving tribute to what makes us human." and praised "... McQueen's way of showing the body itself as an arsenal, arguably the last weapon any of us have to fight back."
Peter Bradshaw Peter Nicholas Bradshaw (born 19 June 1962) is a British writer and film critic. He has been chief film critic at ''The Guardian'' since 1999, and is a contributing editor at ''Esquire'' magazine. Early life and education Bradshaw was educat ...
of ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' scored the piece a maximum five stars, writing, "There is an avoidance of affect and a repudiation of the traditional liberal-lenient gestures of dialogue, dramatic consensus and narrative resolution. This is a powerful, provocative piece of work, which leaves a zero-degree burn on the retina." while praising McQueen's work, "Hunger shows that McQueen is a real film-maker and his background in art has meant a fierce concentration on image, an unflinching attention to what things looked like, moment by moment." Lauren Wissot of ''
Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New Yor ...
'' said of the film, "Hunger, with all its visual, sonic and editing elements flowing together in harmony like a five-star, six-course meal, exemplifies the phrase rt film" and that, "McQueen's film is a nuanced masterpiece that never flaunts its artistry, but uses it humbly to serve the all-important story." Nigel Andrews of the ''
Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...
'' heralded the film and its director, Steve McQueen, "McQueen understands the first principle of cinema. On either side of its middle section, where the very wordiness stands ironic witness to the ultimate impossibility to explain, Hunger has the power and hieratic integrity of silent cinema." Matthew De Abaitua of '' Film4'' scored the film five out of five stars, "Intense, disturbing and powerful mix of vision and detail: a recreation of a terrible time combined with a vivid and distinctive artistic sensibility. Truly powerful filmmaking." Ian Freer of ''
Empire An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...
'' magazine praised both McQueen and Fassbender, proclaiming, "Anchored by Fassbender's turn, Hunger is as much about the personal as the political. The real breakthrough, though, is McQueen, who turns in a film that dazzles and challenges in equal measure." Dave Calhoun of '' Time Out'', gave the film a maximum five stars, stating "Imagine how most filmmakers would tell this story and then see 'Hunger': the differences are bold and powerful and restore faith in cinema's ability to cover history free from the bounds of texts and personalities. It's not an easy watch – but it's an invigorating one. Long live McQueen." Noel Murray, writing for
The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...
highlighted "Hunger may be criticized for being willfully arty, or for reducing a complex political situation to a broadly allegorical vision of martyrdom, but it's never less than visually stunning." Critic J. Hoberman of ''
The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture publication based in Greenwich Village, New York City, known for being the country's first Alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, ...
'' called the film, "A superbly balanced piece of work" and a "compelling drama that's also a formalist triumph." Hoberman went on to say, "I've seen Hunger three times, and with each screening, the spectacle of violence, suffering, and pain becomes more awful and more awe-inspiring."
Lisa Schwarzbaum Lisa Schwarzbaum (born July 5, 1952) is an American film critic. She joined ''Entertainment Weekly'' as a senior writer in 1991, working as a film critic for the magazine alongside Owen Gleiberman from 1995 to 2013. Early life Lisa Schwarzbaum w ...
of ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...
'' gave ''Hunger'' an ''A-'' on an ''A+'' to ''F'' scale and stated, "For your art-house pleasure and discomfort, here's one of the most talked-about film-festival triumphs of 2008, a disturbingly avid re-creation of the last six weeks in the life and slow, self-imposed wasting of Irish hunger striker Bobby Sands." Liam Lacey of ''
The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...
'' gave the film a maximum of four out of four stars, "Hunger -- the disturbing, provocative, brilliant feature debut from British director Steve McQueen -- does for modern film what Caravaggio did to Renaissance painting." Reyhan Harmanci of the ''
San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. ...
'' wrote, "It's horrific. But Hunger displays uncommon intelligence and visual panache, transcending the goal of making the situation seem real. It feels more than real. It's art." in addition to praising McQueen's work by stating "Steve McQueen is a well-known visual artist turned feature film director who makes you wish more moviemakers went to art school." Ann Hornaday of ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'' was very praising of the film, writing, "McQueen has taken the raw materials of filmmaking and committed an act of great art." and calling the piece "An artistic masterpiece." Wendy Ide of ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'' praised McQueen's directing and screenwriting talents by stating, "Ultimately, the one thing that can't be questioned is McQueen's bold and unflinching talent."


Accolades

The film appeared on some critics' top ten lists of the best films of 2008. Andrea Gronvall of ''
Chicago Reader The ''Chicago Reader'', or ''Reader'' (stylized as ЯEADER), is an American alternative newspaper in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its literary style of journalism and coverage of the arts, particularly film and theater. The ''Reader'' has been ...
'' named it the 3rd best film of 2008, and Scott Foundas of ''
LA Weekly ''LA Weekly'' is a free weekly alternative newspaper in Los Angeles, California. The paper covers music, arts, film, theater, culture, and other local news in the Los Angeles area. ''LA Weekly'' was founded in 1978 by Jay Levin (among others), ...
'' named it the 3rd best film of 2008 (along with '' Che''). ''Hunger'' was voted the best film of 2008 by the British film magazine ''
Sight & Sound ''Sight and Sound'' (formerly written ''Sight & Sound'') is a monthly film magazine published by the British Film Institute (BFI). Since 1952, it has conducted the well-known decennial ''Sight and Sound'' Poll of the Greatest Films of All Time. ...
'', and that year McQueen received the Discovery Award and $10,000 at the 33rd annual Toronto film festival. It also won in the best film category at the 2009
Evening Standard British Film Awards The Evening Standard British Film Awards were established in 1973 by London's '' Evening Standard'' newspaper. The Standard Awards is the only ceremony "dedicated to British and Irish talent", judged by a panel of "top UK critics". Each ceremony ...
. The film also was named the "Best Film of 2009" by the Toronto Film Critics Association Awards; it shared the award with
Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American filmmaker, actor, and author. Quentin Tarantino filmography, His films are characterized by graphic violence, extended dialogue often featuring much profanity, and references to ...
's ''
Inglourious Basterds ''Inglourious Basterds'' is a 2009 epic film, epic war film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It stars an ensemble cast including Brad Pitt, Christoph Waltz, Michael Fassbender, Eli Roth, Diane Kruger, Daniel Brühl, Til Schweiger ...
''. Director McQueen won the
BAFTA The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...
Award for "Special Achievement by a British Director, Writer or Producer for their First Feature Film".


References


External links

* * * *
''Hunger''
press conference with Steve McQueen, New York Film Festival at EyeForFilm.co.uk
''Hunger''
nominated for Index on Censorship Film Award 2009
''Hunger: On the Threshold''
– an essay by Chris Darke at the
Criterion Collection The Criterion Collection, Inc. (or simply Criterion) is an American home-video distribution company that focuses on licensing, restoring and distributing "important classic and contemporary films". A "sister company" of arthouse film distributo ...

Life and death in Long Kesh
Ronan Bennett's memoir and film review, ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Hunger (2008 Film) 2008 directorial debut films 2008 drama films 2008 films British political drama films Films from Northern Ireland Irish political drama films 2000s English-language films Films directed by Steve McQueen European Film Awards winners (films) Films about The Troubles (Northern Ireland) Films about the Irish Republican Army Films set in Northern Ireland Films set in 1981 British independent films British prison films Film4 Productions films Irish independent films 1981 Irish hunger strike Caméra d'Or winners Films scored by David Holmes (musician) 2008 independent films Icon Productions films 2000s British films English-language independent films English-language political drama films Bobby Sands