Cillian Murphy’s underrated war movie with 90% on Rotten Tomatoes features one of his best performances

War movies have not always been a genre that Cillian Murphy has been associated with, but in the early days of his career, the Irish actor starred in a war drama that features one of his most underrated performances to date. The film, titled The wind that shakes the barleywas directed by Ken Loach and follows two brothers as they fight in the war for Irish independence and quickly find themselves on opposing sides when a treaty is being negotiated. This Gripping, heartbreaking story of identity and freedom is one of Cillian Murphy’s best movies yet.

what makes The wind that shakes the barley Such a fascinating, emotional watch is how strongly it values ​​historical accuracy and leans into the educational side of storytelling. Although the characters are definitely the most important part of the story, there is a lot of attention to the backdrop of the war and its effects on society as a whole. Although it was Christopher Nolan Oppenheimer Which made Cillian Murphy the first Irish Best Actor winner, smaller projects like The wind that shakes the barley Showed his talents long before the release of the 2023 film.

About what the wind that shakes the barley is about and who’s in it

The war drama features some recognizable faces

The wind that shakes the barley is written by Ken Loach’s long-time collaborator Paul Laverty and takes place during the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War that followed; The story centers around two brothers who fight alongside each other for independence, but their conflicting beliefs cause a chasm when they are Fighting one against another In the civil war. The film takes its title from Robert Dwyer Joyce’s famous poem of the same name, which can be heard early in the film and tells the story of the 1798 Rebellion in Ireland.

In the cast, Cillian Murphy and Padraic Delaney as brothers Damien and Teddy, who are joint protagonists in this large-scale story. They are Game of Thrones‘ Liam Cunningham and Law & Order: UKs Orla Fitzgerald as Dan and Sinead respectively – two fascinating side characters whose presence raises the stakes of the story. The film was A huge success Upon release, widely considered among the best Palme d’Or winners at the Cannes Film Festival.

The Wind That Shakes the Barley is one of Cillian Murphy’s best performances

He is much more subtle and restrained than usual

The wind that shakes the barley is a deeply poignant and personal story of family, sacrifice and fighting for what you believe in. Every scene is bursting with emotion, and the characters are all complex figures who face challenges at every step of their journey. This gives the Perfect recipe for Cillian Murphy to do what he does bestGet the audience on his side and present his feelings through the screen in one of his most sensitive, heartbreaking performances to date.

Murphy is great in exaggerated sci-fi roles like sunshine Or InceptionAnd he is great in the tall and brave protagonist as Tommy Shelby in Picky blinds, But with what he proved Oppenheimer (and first with Ken Loach’s project) is that he is best when he is quiet, self-reflective and reserved. He strikes a perfect balance of subtlety without going too far, which is why it’s so easy to empathize with his character in The wind that shakes the barley. These are Cillian Murphy’s best roles, vii They allow him to really show The depths of his acting skills.

How the Wind That Shakes the Barley compares to Murphy’s other war movies

It was not Murphy’s first nor last war adventure

Although Cillian Murphy has not appeared in many war movies throughout his career, there are several examples that provide similarities and differences from this project. The most popular example is DunkirkWhere he plays a shell-shocked soldier who is taken on a British boat sailing for the rescue beaches. This is a much higher and more violent role as he deals with severe trauma and comes to terms with his situation – his work in The wind that shakes the barley is more internal, thought-provoking and subtle. In many ways, it is more similar to Oppenheimer Like anything else.

Although Oppenheimer Is not a war movie in the most obvious sense of the phrase, the whole purpose of the story centers around winning the Second World War. Over his trip is Oppenheimer Struggle with the consequences of warfareTrying to make sense of his own ideological values ​​and decide whether he is morally right or not. This is very similar to Damien’s situation in The wind that shakes the barley: He’s risking everything by fighting against his family, but he values ​​justice and morality above all else.