Omagh

OMAGH

Aspect ratio: 1.78:1

Sound format: Dolby Digital

Unlike its voracious American counterpart, British TV is generally reticent about dramatizing true-life crimes and atrocities, fearful of causing public offence and generating protest in self-righteous tabloid newspapers. Writer-director Paul Greengrass (THE BOURNE SUPREMACY) has been negotiating this delicate minefield since 1994, producing some of the most compelling works in British TV history (including "Bloody Sunday" and THE MURDER OF STEPHEN LAWRENCE). And while he didn't direct OMAGH - an account of the search for justice following the Real IRA car bomb which exploded in the Irish market town of Omagh in August 1998 - his style is writ large over the entire production. Co-written by Greengrass and Guy Hibbert (SHOT THROUGH THE HEART), the film was directed by Pete Travis, a relative newcomer who distinguished himself in 2003 with his acclaimed TV drama HENRY VIII.

OMAGH focuses on Michael Gallagher (veteran actor Gerard McSorley), a quiet mechanic thrust into the media spotlight following his decision to pursue the shadowy figures who murdered his 21 year old son Aiden (along with so many others) on that dreadful afternoon. From the outset, the movie unspools with documentary precision, using hand-held cameras to enhance the sense of realism: The principal 'characters' are introduced in piecemeal fashion, via quick cuts from one scene to the next, but there's very little specific dialogue in the build-up to the explosion, in which 29 people died and hundreds were injured (primarily because the terrorist's vaguely worded tip-off led police to guide people directly into the bomb's immediate orbit), and the aftermath is reproduced in vivid detail. These difficult scenes are as sordid as they are necessary - the victims' relatives insisted on it - and the widespread grief which followed this appalling incident is depicted through the experiences of the remaining Gallagher family. McSorley's subsequent quest for justice leads him into contact with a wide variety of players, everyone from low-level police informants to some of Ireland's most prominent figures, only to find himself stonewalled by the politics of compromise. To date, no one has been tried for the Omagh bombing.

Respectful, honest and unemotional, this painful reminder of recent history simply records events as they occurred, without affectation or sensationalism. The acting is *peerless*, with McSorley a quiet tower of strength in the central role, matched every step of the way by Michèle Forbes as his distraught wife, and Brenda Fricker as police ombudsman Nuala O'Loan whose investigation into the Omagh inquiry uncovered a catalogue of errors and deceit. Campaigning television at its very best.

I never heard of Peter Travis prior to "Omagh" but the direction in this film deserves more than equal billing with Gerard McSorley, who stars the bereaved father who becomes chairman of the Omagh Support Group. The mounting tension at the start of the film as the bomb is positioned, the police are warned and the crowd on the High Street is herded to the spot where the explosion takes place is enough to take your breath away. It doesn't matter in the least that the accents are difficult for these American ears to understand at the film's beginning because you somehow know exactly what's happening at every moment. The frantic search for the missing son, the dawning realization that he has died, the intense grief, the formation of the Omagh Support Group with McSorley emerging as its leader, the effort to ensure that the investigation is pursued, the determination of the politicians that the incident not be allowed to derail "the peace process," the evasions and downright lies of the police, the mysterious emergence of the truth, the condemnation of police conduct by the police ombudswoman -- all are rendered with controlled intensity that never flags. One device that Travis and his cameraman use repeatedly to great effect is the extreme closeup in which a portion of the character's face is shown, framed usually at an artful angle that a skilled portrait photographer might adopt for a still picture. Those pictures capture the emotions of the characters with particular force. The tragedy of Omagh is brought alive to devastating effect. Don't let the fact that it was made for TV deter you from seeing this superb movie.

I imagine that for almost everyone in Northern Ireland, the title of this film acts as a plot summary as well because the bombing in 1998 of Northern Irish town Omagh is etched in the mind. The afternoon detonation in a bust market street claimed many, many civilian lives and left many more injured. This film covers the bombing and follows the aftermath through the experiences of Michael Gallagher, who lost his son and headed up the efforts of a civilian group looking for results and enquiries.

By the very nature of the story the film starts very strong. The scenes where the crowds are moved away from the wrong area, essentially into the blast area sickeningly tense because we know what is coming. Indeed the immediate aftermath and the hunt for news is almost very moving and it reminded me instantly of how I felt when I heard the news of the attack. With this peak so early, the film has to work to keep things from feeling like they dip. Sadly, it doesn't manage it and the rest of the film doesn't engage as it should, nor does it inform or move. It is a shame but it is a bit messy in the telling – reflecting the sort of ongoing, lack of resolution that many murders have down the decades in Northern Ireland. The conclusion rests heavily on the police enquiry and, as such, it makes the film feel like it is putting the majority of the blame on the police rather than the terrorists who planted the bomb. This is not the case, but it is easy to see it that way with the second half of the film and the way it chooses to conclude as a story. This hurts it – not in terms of balance (although that is an issue) but just because it is part of the film not really having a handle on what it is doing once the aftermath moves from the immediate to the longer term.

The cast are hard to fault though and certainly McSorley does great work in the lead. He captures the unassuming Ulsterman character well – someone recognisable as being one of the sort of people we have in this country (we have countless others but his character reminded me of several relatives). He emotes really well and it is just a shame the film did not use his character better than it did. The rest of the cast are secondary to him but mostly are solid and convincing. The direction is good but it is the writing where it falls down to the point where it can't recover. It doesn't really flow and the structure is part of the problem.

Overall this is a film with an impacting opening 40 minutes, that easily moves and angers in the way the events themselves did. However as a film it doesn't seem to have a tight focus on where to go from there and as a result the story is messy and unclear, leaving the viewer with a memory of emotion amid the collection of scenes that follow. Can't fault the intent but the delivery is lacking.

I am to young to remember the Omagh bombing but the film made you feel you were really their at the bombing and after.

The movie is based on a real event when 29 innocent people died by a car bomb planted by the real I.R.A (Irish Republican Army) The film focuses on Michael Gallagher and his family who lost there 19 year old son Aiden in the bombing. This results in the rest of the family trying to fit in without Aiden but fail. They then join a support group hoping to bring the I.R.A to justice.

Paul Greengrass(United 93,The Bourne Ultimatum) gives a fantastic script and Pete Travis does fantastic work in the direction and turns it into a movie that has you reaching for your handkerchiefs.

It is very rare to see a cheap film with a small and unknown cast and even an unknown director and turn it into a fascinating and wonderful drama that couldn't be topped no matter how much Hollywood stars or money would be put in it was a rare but special treat with almost no mistakes. Omagh will be very hard to find in a DVD shop but once you see it all that work will be worth it.

Having just seen this film, I believe that some superlatives are warranted! The performances in this film are hauntingly powerful, most notably Gerald Mcsorley, whose immense portrayal adds credibility and resonance to the tragic story. The direction is magnificent...mostly shot in the style of a documentary, while refraining from actually being a mockumentary. This also adds weight. The fact that this creative, interesting and powerful film only finds a home on TV, rather than at the cinemas...while films like Sex lives and the Potato Men gets a general release, says a lot about the British Film industry!