IMDb > Michael Collins (1996)
Michael Collins
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Michael Collins (1996) More at IMDbPro »

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Michael Collins (1996) -- Michael Collins plays a crucial role in the establishment of the Irish Free State in the 1920s, but becomes vilified by those hoping to create a completely independent Irish republic.
Michael Collins (1996) -- Michael Collins plays a crucial role in the establishment of the Irish Free State in the 1920s, but becomes vilified by those hoping to create a completely independent Irish republic.
Michael Collins (1996) -- Sinematurk - Trailer (Flash)

Overview

User Rating:
6.9/10   10,826 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?

Up 10% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.

Director:

Neil Jordan

Writer:

Neil Jordan (written by)

Contact:

View company contact information for Michael Collins on IMDbPro.

Release Date:

11 October 1996 (USA) more

Tagline:

Ireland, 1916. His dreams inspired hope. His words inspired passion. His courage forged a nation's destiny. more

Plot:

Michael Collins plays a crucial role in the establishment of the Irish Free State in the 1920s, but becomes vilified by those hoping to create a completely independent Irish republic. full summary | add synopsis

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 4 wins & 8 nominations more

NewsDesk:
(12 articles)

'Five Minutes of Heaven' Us Screening in La
 (From IFTN. 27 August 2009, 7:24 AM, PDT)

Mid-Week Movie News Wrap Up - August 13, 2009
 (From Screen Rant. 13 August 2009, 9:12 AM, PDT)

User Comments:

Deeply flawed but compelling more (76 total)


Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)
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Additional Details

Runtime:

133 min

Country:

UK | Ireland | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1 more

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS


Fun Stuff

Trivia:

Liam Neeson was 43 when this movie was made. The real-life Michael Collins was 31 when he died. more

Goofs:

Errors in geography: During the Easter Rising scenes, the Volunteers and Citizen Army are shown marching out of the General Post Office to surrender. However, the day before the surrender, they had retreated from the burning GPO to another building down the road, and surrendered from there. more

Quotes:

[first lines]
Joe O'Reilly: [dictating a letter] You've got to think of him. The way he was... He was what the times demanded. And life without him seems impossible. But he's dead. And life is possible. He made it possible.
more

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: Agent for H.A.R.M. (#9.15)" (1997) more

Soundtrack:

She Moved Through The Fair more


FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
26 out of 43 people found the following comment useful.
Deeply flawed but compelling, 6 March 2006
7/10
Author: poc-1 from Cork, Ireland

I saw this first in the now defunct Capitol Cineplex in Cork. I was surprised to see so many senior citizens in the cinema. The cineplex was so scummy it had to be something special to draw them in. Some of them might have been old enough to remember the civil war or at least to have had a close family member killed in it. Many of them were clearly moved by it particularly the end with its archive footage. It is a moving film, but you have to be careful.

One should never confuse history with entertainment and this is not a history lesson. All the major events are there, but there is a horrible bias from the director. I don't like DeValera or what he stood for, but what was hinted at the end in this movie is a travesty. If such a thing is true, you have to prove it, you can't slyly hint at it. There are other insidious things such as mortars and car-bombs which are clear reference to the 1970s-90s Northern conflict. Such weapons did not exist in 1916. To me this is an oblique way of implying that the Provos are somehow the legitimate heirs of the IRA in 1916 which of course they are not.

Despite this I enjoyed the movie a lot. The production values and acting was so good, it really felt like a timewarp. Neil Jordan is a great director, Neeson and Rickman are superb in their parts. Rickman looks so much like DeValera it is uncanny. I even liked Julia Roberts. It looks like she made a fair attempt at a Dun Laoghaire accent and of course it sounded phony. Southside Dublin accents all sound phoney to me anyway so I didn't mind. The best moment was the scene where Collins starts the civil war sitting behind a howitzer aimed at the Four Courts and fires. You can see a huge explosion and bits coming out portico. I actually felt scared that they had damaged this famous Dublin landmark. This won't mean much to someone from overseas, but anyone familiar with the Four Courts and the resident lawyers (sorry "barristers") in their eighteenth century costumes would surely enjoy firing an artillery piece at the overpaid clowns. I wish I had a howitzer like that.

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Message Boards

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Nudity? lgwynne1468
Actors Performances + Roles Mike-Fitz-97
Photo of Collins jw_evans_wales
Worst Julia Roberts Performance Ever? Axeyard
Why is Cathal Brugha always pissed at Michael? edimeo25
Alan Rickman Fallingslowly21
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