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'In the Name of the Father' screens October 8

The 36th Annual Film Series continues Sunday, October 8, 2 pm with In the Name of the Father, directed by Jim Sheridan, Ireland/UK (1993), 133 min.

An all-star cast depicts the true story of Gerry Conlon, a young, unemployed man and sometimes petty thief from the Catholic neighborhood of 1970s Belfast. Gerry's main interests are getting drunk and partying, much to the dismay of his quiet, frail father Giuseppe, who sends his son to England to avoid his getting on the wrong side of the IRA. In London, Gerry is arrested for involvement in an IRA bombing that occurs shortly after his arrival. Innocent but forced to confess, he is sentenced to life imprisonment as one of the “Guildford Four,” and his father also ends up imprisoned in an unlikely conspiracy case. The struggles of the father and son, individually and together, provide a moving depiction of reconciliation among the ongoing combat between religious and political factions in strife-torn Northern Ireland.

The Film Institute is supported by the Thatcher Hoffman Smith Endowment and OKCU’s Center for Interpersonal Studies through Film and Literature.

A discussion will follow the presentation for those who wish to stay.

Praise for In the Name of the Father

“In the Name of the Father is a model of this kind of engaged, enraged filmmaking, a politically charged Fugitive that uses one of the most celebrated cases of recent British history to steamroller an audience with the power of rousing, polemical cinema.” Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times

“The picture turns into a kind of stylized morality play about the right and the wrong ways for Irishmen to respond to distorted portraits of their character, and it's terrifically effective.” Terrence Rafferty, The New Yorker

“[Daniel Day-Lewis] proves here once again that he is one of the most talented and interesting actors of his generation.” Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Viewing Notes for In the Name of the Father

For more films in the 2017-2018 series, read more HERE.

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