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The Rocky Road To Dublin & The Making Of Rocky Road (1968)
Reviewed by Matthew Leyland
Updated 06 September 2005
Peter Lennon's documentary Rocky Road To Dublin has been down a bumpy path: made in 1968, its exposé of a repressed Republic was banned for more than three decades in Ireland after only one screening. Yet it captured imaginations in France, where it chimed with the revolutionary fervour of the times. And now, following an airing at the 2004 Cork Film Festival, this honest, lively, penetrating portrait reaches UK audiences, complemented by its own making-of.
It's not hard to see why the film caused such a fuss. Its uncompromising tone is set by Lennon's opening voice-over, which declares an attempt to explore "the plight of a community which survived nearly 700 years of English occupation and then nearly sank under the weight of its own heroes and clergy". The critique of church and state that ensues is sometimes implicit (schoolkids spouting fallacies derived from Catholic dogma) and often daringly overt, as in the contributions of author Sean O'Faolain, who decries post-independent Ireland as a society of "urbanised peasants" lacking "moral courage".
"A TOUGH BUT TENDER SNAPSHOT"
Yet despite its clear agenda, this is more than a rant. In the making-of that precedes the film (which provides a wealth of context), ex-Guardian journo Lennon describes Rocky Road as "affectionate", a view borne out by the verité charm of its images (shot by French New Wave lensman Raoul Coutard). OK, modern viewers may chuckle at the odd Guinness-supping cliché, but there's little evidence of the nihilism Lennon's critics accused him of peddling. This is a tough but tender snapshot whose sociological and artistic merits have stood the test of time.
Reviewed by Matthew Leyland
Updated 06 September 2005
Peter Lennon's documentary Rocky Road To Dublin has been down a bumpy path: made in 1968, its exposé of a repressed Republic was banned for more than three decades in Ireland after only one screening. Yet it captured imaginations in France, where it chimed with the revolutionary fervour of the times. And now, following an airing at the 2004 Cork Film Festival, this honest, lively, penetrating portrait reaches UK audiences, complemented by its own making-of.
It's not hard to see why the film caused such a fuss. Its uncompromising tone is set by Lennon's opening voice-over, which declares an attempt to explore "the plight of a community which survived nearly 700 years of English occupation and then nearly sank under the weight of its own heroes and clergy". The critique of church and state that ensues is sometimes implicit (schoolkids spouting fallacies derived from Catholic dogma) and often daringly overt, as in the contributions of author Sean O'Faolain, who decries post-independent Ireland as a society of "urbanised peasants" lacking "moral courage".
"A TOUGH BUT TENDER SNAPSHOT"
Yet despite its clear agenda, this is more than a rant. In the making-of that precedes the film (which provides a wealth of context), ex-Guardian journo Lennon describes Rocky Road as "affectionate", a view borne out by the verité charm of its images (shot by French New Wave lensman Raoul Coutard). OK, modern viewers may chuckle at the odd Guinness-supping cliché, but there's little evidence of the nihilism Lennon's critics accused him of peddling. This is a tough but tender snapshot whose sociological and artistic merits have stood the test of time.
