''In the Name of the Father'' is a 1993

biographical A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curric ...

crime drama Crime film is a film belonging to the crime fiction genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and fiction. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combine with many other genres, such as Drama (film and television), dr ...

film co-written and directed by

Jim Sheridan Jim Sheridan (born 6 February 1949) is an Irish people, Irish playwright and filmmaker. Between 1989 and 1993, Sheridan directed three critically acclaimed films set in Ireland, ''My Left Foot'' (1989), ''The Field (1990 film), The Field'' (19 ...

. It is based on the true story of the

Guildford Four The Guildford Four and Maguire Seven were two groups of people, mostly Northern Irish, who were wrongly convicted in English courts in 1975 and 1976 of the Guildford pub bombings of 5 October 1974 and the Woolwich pub bombing of 7 November 1974 ...

, four people falsely convicted of the 1974

Guildford pub bombings The Guildford pub bombings occurred on Saturday 5 October 1974 when the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) detonated two gelignite bombs at two pubs in Guildford, Surrey, England. The pubs were targeted that evening because they were popu ...

that killed four off-duty British soldiers and a civilian. The screenplay was adapted by

Terry George Terence George (born 20 December 1952) is an Irish screenwriter and director. Much of his film work (e.g. '' The Boxer'', '' Some Mother's Son'', and '' In the Name of the Father'') involves "The Troubles" in Northern Ireland. He was nominated ...

and Jim Sheridan from the 1990 autobiography ''Proved Innocent: The Story of Gerry Conlon of the Guildford Four'' by

Gerry Conlon Gerard Patrick Conlon (1 March 1954 – 21 June 2014) was an Irish man known for being one of the Guildford Four who spent 15 years in prison after being wrongly convicted of being a Provisional IRA bomber. Biography Gerard Conlon was born in ...

. The film grossed $65 million at the box office and received overwhelmingly positive reviews. It was nominated for seven Oscars at the

66th Academy Awards The 66th Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored films released in 1993 and took place on March 21, 1994, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles beginning at 6:00 p. ...

, including Best Actor (

Daniel Day-Lewis Sir Daniel Michael Blake Day-Lewis (born 29 April 1957) is an English actor. Often described as one of the greatest actors in the history of cinema, he is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Daniel Day-Lewis, numerous a ...

), Best Supporting Actor (

Pete Postlethwaite Peter William Postlethwaite (7 February 1946 – 2 January 2011) was an English character actor. After various stage and minor television appearances, Postlethwaite's first major success arose through the film '' Distant Voices, Still Lives'' ...

), Best Supporting Actress (

Emma Thompson Dame Emma Thompson (born 15 April 1959) is a British actress and screenwriter. Emma Thompson on screen and stage, Her work spans over four decades of screen and stage, and List of awards and nominations received by Emma Thompson, her accola ...

Best Director Best Director is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards. It may refer to: Film awards * AACTA Award for Best Direction * Academy Award for Best Director * As ...

, and

Best Picture The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Bes ...

Plot

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

is mistaken as an IRA

sniper A sniper is a military or paramilitary marksman who engages targets from positions of concealment or at distances exceeding the target's detection capabilities. Snipers generally have specialized training and are equipped with telescopic si ...

by British security forces and pursued until a

riot A riot or mob violence is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people. Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The p ...

breaks out. Gerry is sent to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

by his father Giuseppe to dissuade an IRA reprisal against him. One evening, Gerry burgles a prostitute's flat and steals £700. While he is taking drugs in a park with his friend Paul Hill, alongside homeless Irishman Charlie Burke, an explosion in Guildford occurs, killing four off-duty soldiers plus a civilian as well as injuring many others. Returning to Belfast sometime later, Gerry is captured by the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

and

Royal Ulster Constabulary The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) was the police force in Northern Ireland from 1922 to 2001. It was founded on 1 June 1922 as a successor to the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) Richard Doherty, ''The Thin Green Line – The History of the ...

and arrested on terrorism charges. Gerry is flown to England, where he and his friend Paul together with two others are dubbed the

and are subjected to police torture as part of their interrogation. Gerry maintains his innocence, but signs a

confession A confession is a statement – made by a person or by a group of people – acknowledging some personal fact that the person (or the group) would ostensibly prefer to keep hidden. The term presumes that the speaker is providing information that ...

after the police threaten to kill his father, who is later arrested along with other members of the Conlon family, later dubbed the

Maguire Seven The Guildford Four and Maguire Seven were two groups of people, mostly Northern Irish, who were wrongly convicted in English courts in 1975 and 1976 of the Guildford pub bombings of 5 October 1974 and the Woolwich pub bombing of 7 November 1974. ...

. At his trial, although Gerry's defence points out numerous inconsistencies in the police investigation, he, along with the rest of the Guildford Four, is sentenced to life imprisonment. During their time in prison Gerry and Giuseppe are approached by new inmate Joe McAndrew, who informs them that he was the real perpetrator of the bombing and had confessed this to the police. The police, in order to save face, withheld this new information. Though Gerry warms to Joe, his opinion changes when Joe sets a hated prison guard on fire during a riot. Giuseppe later dies in custody, leaving Gerry to take over his father's campaign for justice. Giuseppe's lawyer

Gareth Peirce Gareth Peirce (born Jean Margaret Webb; March 1940) is a British solicitor and human rights activist. She has worked on a number of high-profile cases involving allegations of human rights injustices. Her work with Gerry Conlon and the Guild ...

, who had been investigating the case on Giuseppe's behalf, discovers vital evidence related to Gerry's original alibi with a note attached that reads: "Not to be shown to the defence." Through a statement made by Charlie Burke, at a court appeal, it totally exonerates Gerry and the rest. The film ends with the current activities of the wrongly accused being given, and also by stating that the police who investigated the case were never prosecuted for any wrongdoing. The real perpetrators of the Guildford Bombing have not been charged with the crime.

Cast

as Gerard Patrick "Gerry" Conlon *

as Patrick "Giuseppe" Conlon *

* John Lynch as Paul Hill *

Corin Redgrave Corin William Redgrave (16 July 19396 April 2010) was an English actor. Early life Redgrave was born in Marylebone, London, the only son and middle child of actors Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson. He was educated at Westminster School and ...

as Inspector Robert Dixon *

Beatie Edney Beatrice Edney (born 23 October 1962) is an English actress. She is best known for playing Heather MacLeod in '' Highlander'' (1986), and Prudie Paynter in '' Poldark'' (2015–2019). Career Born in London, she is the daughter of actress Sylvia ...

as Carole Richardson *

John Benfield Jonathan Edmund Fulford "John" Turner (9 November 1951 – 16 June 2020), better known by his stage name John Benfield, was a British character actor. Early life and education Benfield was born in Wanstead, Essex, the son of margarine sales rep ...

as Chief PO Barker *

Paterson Joseph Paterson Davis Joseph (born 22 June 1964) is a British actor and author. Joseph appeared in the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) productions of ''King Lear'' and ''Love's Labour's Lost'' in 1990. On television he is best known for his roles in '' ...

as Benbay *

Marie Jones Sarah Marie Jones (born 1951) is a Belfast-based actress and playwright. Born into a working-class Protestant family, Jones was an actress for several years before turning her hand to writing. Her plays have been staged on Broadway as well as ...

Sarah Conlon Sarah Conlon ( Maguire; 20 January 1926 – 19 July 2008) was an Irish housewife and a prominent campaigner in one of the most high-profile miscarriage of justice cases in British legal history. She spent decades clearing the names of her husba ...

Gerard McSorley Gerard McSorley (Irish: Gearóid Mac Somhairle; born 1 January 1950) is an Irish theatre, television and film actor. Early life He was born in the County Tyrone town of Omagh and, after attending a Christian Brothers school in his hometown, ...

as Detective Pavis *

Frank Harper Frank Harper is an English actor and film producer. He is best known for his "hard man" roles, such as Billy Bright in ''The Football Factory (film), The Football Factory'' (2004) and Dog in ''Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels'' (1998). Care ...

as Ronnie Smalls *

Mark Sheppard Mark Andreas Sheppard is an English actor and musician. Sheppard is known for playing the demon/King of Hell Crowley on ''Supernatural'' and for his recurring roles as lawyer Romo Lampkin on the ''Battlestar Galactica'' reboot, Interpol inves ...

as Patrick Joseph "Paddy" Armstrong * Don Baker as Joe McAndrew *

Tom Wilkinson Thomas Geoffrey Wilkinson (5 February 1948 – 30 December 2023) was an English actor. Known for his roles on stage and screen, he received numerous accolades including a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a Primetime Emmy Award as well ...

as an Appeal Prosecutor *

Anthony Brophy Anthony Brophy is an English-born Irish actor. Brophy has had various roles in films, short-films, television programmes, theatre, and in a video game. Brophy has appeared in ''In the Name of the Father'', '' The Professor and the Madman'', ''T ...

as Danny

Production

To prepare for the role of Gerry Conlon, Day-Lewis lost over in weight. To gain an insight into Conlon's thoughts and feelings at the time, Day-Lewis also spent three days and nights in a jail cell. He was prevented from sleeping by a group of thugs, who would bang on the door every ten minutes with tin cups through the night, then he was interrogated by three different teams of real Special Branch officers for nine hours. He would also insist that crew members throw cold water at him and verbally abuse him. He also kept his Belfast accent on and off set. Day-Lewis has stated in an interview that he went through all this because otherwise "How could I understand how an innocent man could sign that confession and destroy his own life."

Reception

The film received very positive reviews from most critics. The review aggregator website

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 ...

gave the film a score of 94% based on 49 reviews, with an average rating of 7.80/10. The site's consensus states: "Impassioned and meticulously observed, ''In the Name of the Father'' mines rousing drama from a factual miscarriage of justice, aided by scorching performances and director Jim Sheridan's humanist focus." 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 score of 84 out of 100 based on 16 reviews indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by

CinemaScore CinemaScore is an American market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts from the data. Background Ed Mintz, who ...

gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale. The film was the second highest-grossing ever in Ireland (behind ''

Jurassic Park ''Jurassic Park'', later referred to as ''Jurassic World'', is an American science fiction media franchise created by Michael Crichton, centered on a disastrous attempt to create a theme park of De-extinction#Cloning, cloned dinosaurs. It bega ...

)'', and the highest-grossing Irish film, beating the record set by '' The Commitments'' in 1991, with a gross of

IR£ The pound ( Irish: ) was the currency of Ireland until 2002. Its ISO 4217 code was IEP, and the symbol was £ (or £Ir for distinction.) The Irish pound was replaced by the euro on 1 January 1999. Euro currency did not begin circulation until ...

2.91 million ($4.5 million).

Year-end lists

* 2nd –

James Berardinelli James Berardinelli (born September 25, 1967) is an American film critic. His reviews are mainly published on his blog ''ReelViews.'' Approved as a critic by the aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, he has published two collections of reviews of movies on ...

, ''ReelViews'' * Top 10 (not ranked) – Dennis King, ''

Tulsa World The ''Tulsa World'' is an American daily newspaper. It serves the city of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and is the primary newspaper for the northeastern and eastern portions of Oklahoma. The printed edition is the second-most circulated newspaper in the sta ...

'' * Honorable mention – Dan Craft, ''

The Pantagraph ''The Pantagraph'' is a daily newspaper that serves Bloomington–Normal, Illinois, along with 60 communities and eight counties in the Central Illinois area. Its headquarters are in Bloomington and it is owned by Lee Enterprises. The name is ...

Accolades

Controversy

Upon its release, the film proved controversial for some historical inaccuracies and for fictionalising parts of the story. Jim Sheridan defended his choices in 2003, stating: "I was accused of lying in ''In the Name of the Father'', but the real lie was saying it was a film about the Guildford Four when really it was about a non-violent parent." In the film Gerry and his father Giuseppe (in the closing credits, the name is misspelled "Guiseppe") share a cell, but this never took place; they were usually kept in separate prisons. The real perpetrators of the Guildford pub bombings were the IRA's Balcombe Street Gang, who admitted to the Guildford and Woolwich bombings during their trials, rather than the fictional character of Joe McAndrew. The courtroom scenes featuring Gareth Peirce were also heavily criticised as clearly straying from recorded events and established English legal practices since, as a

solicitor A solicitor is a lawyer who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and enabled to p ...

and not a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

, she would not have been able to appear in court at the time. Furthermore, Peirce did not represent Giuseppe Conlon. Investigative journalist

David Pallister David Pallister (born as David Pallister Clark; 15 March 1945 – 4 September 2021) was a British investigative journalist. He worked on ''The Guardian'' for many years, specialising in miscarriages of justice, the arms trade, corruption in i ...

wrote: "The myriad absurdities in the court scenes, straight out of ''

LA Law ''L.A. Law'' is an American legal drama television series created by Steven Bochco and Terry Louise Fisher for NBC. It ran for eight seasons and 172 episodes from September 15, 1986, to May 19, 1994. The series centers on the partners, assoc ...

'', are inexcusable." In a 1994 radio interview, Anne Maguire, a member of The Maguire Seven who, along with her husband, brother and two young sons, went to prison because of the false confessions of her nephew Gerry Conlon and Paul Hill, revealed her lingering anger and bitterness at the pair for wrongly incriminating them, as well as her dismay at the film for, in her view, depicting Conlon as a hero. (She and her family were all officially exonerated by the British government in 1991.) She also criticised director Jim Sheridan for, as she claims, never reaching out to her or her family for their side of the story, and sharply castigated the film for alleged inaccuracies, including a scene showing Conlon and Hill visiting her prior to their arrests, as she adamantly maintains that Hill never once set foot in her home—a key point in her defence at trial.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack of the film includes the song " You Made Me the Thief of Your Heart", performed by

Sinéad O'Connor Shuhada' Sadaqat (born Sinéad Marie Bernadette O'Connor; , ; 8 December 1966 – 26 July 2023) was an Irish singer, songwriter, record producer and activist. Her debut studio album, ''The Lion and the Cobra'', was released in 1987 and achieve ...

and written by

Bono Paul David Hewson (born 10 May 1960), known by the nickname Bono ( ), is an Irish singer-songwriter and activist. He is a founding member, the lead vocalist, and primary lyricist of the rock band U2. Bono is known for his impassioned voca ...

Gavin Friday Gavin Friday (born Fionán Martin Hanvey, 8 October 1959) is an Irish singer and songwriter, composer, actor and painter, best known as a founding member of the post-punk group The Virgin Prunes. Early life Fionan Hanvey was born in Dublin an ...

, and

Maurice Seezer Maurice Seezer (real name Maurice Roycroft, and previously known as ''The Man Seezer'') is an Irish songwriter, musician, and film music composer. Born in 1960, he grew up in the Dublin suburb of Coolock, in a musical family. Film scores written o ...

. The soundtrack also includes "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" performed by

The Jimi Hendrix Experience James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...

. However, the Bob Dylan Song "Like a Rolling Stone" was not included on the album due to licensing restrictions. The soundtrack featured these songs: #

and

- "In the Name of the Father" (5:42) #

- "

Voodoo Child (Slight Return) "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" is a song written by Jimi Hendrix and recorded by the Jimi Hendrix Experience in 1968 that appears as the final track on the group's third studio album, ''Electric Ladyland'', released that year. It contains improv ...

" (5:09) # Bono and Gavin Friday - "Billy Boola" (3:45) #

The Kinks The Kinks were an English rock band formed in London in 1963 by brothers Ray Davies, Ray and Dave Davies, and Pete Quaife. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British ...

- "

Dedicated Follower of Fashion "Dedicated Follower of Fashion" is a 1966 song by British band the Kinks. It lampoons the contemporary British fashion scene and mod culture in general. Originally released as a single, it has been included on many of the band's later albums. M ...

" (3:00) # Trevor Jones - "Interrogation" (7:11) #

Bob Marley and the Wailers Bob Marley and the Wailers (previously known as the Wailers and prior to that the Wailing Rudeboys, the Wailing Wailers and the Teenagers) were a Jamaican ska, rocksteady and reggae band. The founding members, in 1963, were Bob Marley (Robert ...

- "

Is This Love Is This Love may refer to: * "Is This Love" (Daryl Braithwaite song) * "Is This Love?" (Clap Your Hands Say Yeah song) * "Is This Love?" (The Fireman song) * "Is This Love" (Aiden Grimshaw song) * "Is This Love" (Bob Marley & The Wailers song) ...

" (3:51) # Trevor Jones - "Walking the Circle" (4:42) #

Thin Lizzy Thin Lizzy are an Irish rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. The band initially consisted of bass guitarist, lead vocalist and principal songwriter Phil Lynott, drummer Brian Downey, guitarist Eric Bell and organist Eric Wrixon although Wr ...

- "

Whiskey in the Jar "Whiskey in the Jar" ( Roud 533) is an Irish traditional song set in the southern mountains of Ireland, often with specific mention of counties Cork and Kerry. The song, about a rapparee (highwayman) who is betrayed by his wife or lover, is ...

" (5:44) # Trevor Jones - "Passage of Time" (5:52) #

- " You Made Me the Thief of Your Heart" (6:21)

Filming locations

South Lotts South Lotts is a small area to the south of the river Liffey in inner-city Dublin 4, one km east of Dublin City Centre, Ireland. It was created following the embankment of the River Liffey in 1711 between the city and Ringsend, thereby ...

, Dublin,

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

(used for opening Belfast scenes) *

Sheriff Street Sheriff Street () is a street in the north inner city of Dublin, Ireland, lying between East Wall and North Wall and often considered to be part of the North Wall area. It is divided into Sheriff Street Lower (west end) and Sheriff Street Uppe ...

, Dublin, Ireland (Sheriff Street flats complex (now demolished) used for riot scene) *

Kilmainham Gaol Kilmainham Gaol () is a former prison in Kilmainham, Dublin. It is now a museum run by the Office of Public Works, an agency of the Government of Ireland. Many Irish revolutionaries, including the leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising (Patrick Pea ...

, Dublin, Ireland (as Park Royal Prison) *

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

(used for many London scenes)

References

External links

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:In The Name Of The Father 1993 films 1990s biographical drama films 1990s British films 1990s English-language films 1990s prison films 1993 drama films British biographical drama films British courtroom films British legal films British prison drama films Political drama films based on actual events Films about lawyers Films about miscarriage of justice Films about the Irish Republican Army Films about The Troubles (Northern Ireland) Films directed by Jim Sheridan Films scored by Trevor Jones Films set in Belfast Films shot in the Republic of Ireland Golden Bear winners Irish biographical drama films Irish political drama films Universal Pictures films British political drama films English-language biographical drama films English-language crime films Films set in 1974 Films set in 1989