Black Irish (2007)

User Rating:

7.1/10   

Director:

Brad Gann

Writer (WGA):

Brad Gann (written by)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

You can't choose family.

Plot:

A teenage boy (Angarano) longs to win the attention of his emotionally distant father.

Plot Keywords:

Catholic | Baseball | Life And Death | Irish | Family Relationships

Awards:

10 wins

Cast

Michael Angarano	...	Cole McKay
Brendan Gleeson	...	Desmond McKay
Tom Guiry	...	Terry McKay
Melissa Leo	...	Margaret McKay
Emily VanCamp	...	Kathleen McKay
Michael Rispoli	...	Joey
Finn Curtin	...	Coach
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Ken Arpino	...	Valet
Wilson Better	...	Graves
Francis Capra	...	Anthony
Mark S. Cartier	...	Mr. Quint
A.J. Coppola	...	Hoodlum
Peter Darrigo	...	Track Buddy #1
Steven Paul Davis	...	Valet #1
Jeffrey DelliColli	...	Restaurant Cook
Bonnie Dennison	...	Donna O'Leary
William Ellis	...	Busboy / Student
John Fiore	...	Orsini
Steve Flynn	...	Stolen car victim
Joanna Herrington	...	Mrs. O'Leary
David Ian	...	Priest
Tom Kemp	...	Priest
Caryn Andrea Lindsey	...	Pregnant Girly #1
Andrea Lyman	...	Nurse
Dave Matt	...	Valet
Joe McEachern	...	Cop
Kate Murphy	...	Restaurant Patron
Kevin O'Donnell	...	Fired Busboy
Carmel O'Reilly	...	Sister Agatha
Danielle Perry	...	Sister Mary Elise
David Rasner	...	Various Voices (voice)
Harvey Soolman	...	Umpire
Stream	...	Dinner Guest
Frank T. Wells	...	Father Magruder
Bates Wilder	...	Officer Cowen
Scott Winters	...	Doctor
Joseph Zamparelli	...	Track Buddy #2
Peter Ziobro	...	Bus Stop Patron

MPAA:

Rated R for some language and brief violence.

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

USA:R

Filming Locations:

Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Company:

Creanspeak Funding

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the scene in the McKay's living room where the Father is comparing life to baseball while watching the game, the first shots of the game are the Red Sox playing at Yankee Stadium, while the later shots in the conversation show the Red Sox paying home at Fenway Park.

Quotes:

Desmond McKay: [Tricks the dog to run away] Who's the king now, eh? Who's the king?

Black Irish

A young man struggles to grow up with principles as his family begins to self-destruct around him in this coming of age drama. Cole McKay (Michael Angarano) is a boy in his middle-teens growing up in an Irish-Catholic family in Boston. While Cole has dreams of playing major league baseball some day, his parents Desmond (Brendan Gleeson) and Margaret (Melissa Leo) are blind to his ambitions, and his older brother Terry (Tom Guiry) is a petty criminal who is unwittingly drawing Cole into his orbit. While Margaret is obsessed with projecting an image that the McKay family are happy and God-fearing folk, Desmond has been sinking deeper into depression ever since he lost his job, and his marriage is slowly but surely falling apart. The family's pride takes a body blow when Cole's teenage sister Kathleen (Emily Van Camp) discovers she's pregnant, but Cole decides it's time he took on some adult responsibilities, and gets himself a part-time job at a restaurant. Black Irish was the first directorial effort for screenwriter Brad Gann.