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Product Description
Fergus (Mark Womack) returns to his native Liverpool for the funeral of his childhood friend Frankie, a fellow private security contractor who has been killed on "Route Irish", the deadly and now infamous stretch of road between Baghdad airport and the Green Zone. ROUTE IRISH is a fast-paced conspiracy thriller that delivers a fresh insight into the moral and political corruption at play in Iraq.
Product Description
United Kingdom released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: LANGUAGES: English ( Dolby Digital 5.1 ), English ( Subtitles ), WIDESCREEN (1.78:1), SPECIAL FEATURES: Interactive Menu, Scene Access, SYNOPSIS: Celebrated British filmmaker Ken Loach explore the controversies of his nation's role in the war in Iraq in this intelligent thriller. Fergus (Mark Womack) served with distinction in a British Special Forces outfit in Iraq, and after his hitch in the Army ended, Fergus was approached by a private security firm working with civilian contractors in the war zone. Fergus wasn't interested in returning to Iraq, but when he was offered £10,000 a month for his services, he changed his mind, and persuaded his army buddy Frankie (John Bishop) to also sign on. Fergus came to regret his decision when Frankie died after hitting an improvised explosive device while traveling on Route Irish, the treacherous road between Baghdad's airport and the heavily fortified Green Zone. While attending Frankie's funeral, Fergus is approached by a woman who gives him Frankie's old cell phone, which holds a startling video of Iraqi civilians being murdered by employees of the same security firm that employed him and Frankie. Fergus believes there's a connection between the video and Frankie's death, and sets out to find it with the help of Frankie's widow Rachel (Andrea Lowe) and Harim (Talib Rasool), an Iraqi refugee. But the top men at the firm are not about to admit any wrongdoing, and uncovering what really happens proves to be a difficult and taxing process. Route Irish received its world premiere at the 2010. SCREENED/AWARDED AT: Cannes Film Festival, ...Route Irish (2010) ( Irlandezikos dromos ) ( L'altra verità )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
This is a film about personal loss and the effect of combat, but unfortunately this tends to slip behind the outlines of a Death Wish revenge story. From the very beginning of the film the hero acts like he has escaped from a Harry Enfield "Barry, Gary and Terry" sketch, he cooks off at the drop of a hat. His responses are highly neurotic and very aggressive ultimately going as far as car-bombing and torture. This gives the film a febrile quality; Fergus appears to be solving the mystery of his chum's death, but do not be fooled, this is not a rational detective story but a descent into sadness and madness. I think the audience needs to be alerted to this a lot earlier in the piece; this is not The Shooter, it's a film about personal tragedy. The effect is that I thought more about its message after watching it than I did during viewing: in some ways its variable mixture of logic and emotion matching that of the hero.
Format:DVD
There is an element of the Reed's Third Man about this movie in its dealings with the aftermath of war and a conspiracy. It also begins with a funeral when Fergus (Mark Womack) an ex soldier and mercenary shows up to the funeral of his best friend and fellow mercenary Frankie (John Bishop). Finding the accounts of Frankie's death in Iraq unsatisfying, Fergus starts his own investigation.
The purpose of this movie is considerably more political than Carol Reed's earlier masterpiece, exploring the devastation brought on Iraq by the 2003 invasion and particularly by the invading forces profligate use of mercenaries. The hypocrisy of the west is also touched upon: as an Iraqi character Harim (Talib Rasool) indicates - thousands of Iraqis were murdered as a consequence of the invasion, what makes the killings at the core of this movie interesting to Fergus, and by extension the audience, is that one of the casualties was British.
Mark Womack delivers a frentic performance in this movie as a man driven to murderous rage by guilt. Andrea Lowe is a more nuanced presence delivering a beautifully subtle performance as Frankie's widow, Rachel. Fergus's fury echoes that of the movie itself, rendering both, at moments, less articulate and coherent that one would hope. Still the movie is an honourable exploration of the consequences of the illegal invasion of Iraq by a director, Ken Loach, whose work has consistently embodied what is best about British society.
The purpose of this movie is considerably more political than Carol Reed's earlier masterpiece, exploring the devastation brought on Iraq by the 2003 invasion and particularly by the invading forces profligate use of mercenaries. The hypocrisy of the west is also touched upon: as an Iraqi character Harim (Talib Rasool) indicates - thousands of Iraqis were murdered as a consequence of the invasion, what makes the killings at the core of this movie interesting to Fergus, and by extension the audience, is that one of the casualties was British.
Mark Womack delivers a frentic performance in this movie as a man driven to murderous rage by guilt. Andrea Lowe is a more nuanced presence delivering a beautifully subtle performance as Frankie's widow, Rachel. Fergus's fury echoes that of the movie itself, rendering both, at moments, less articulate and coherent that one would hope. Still the movie is an honourable exploration of the consequences of the illegal invasion of Iraq by a director, Ken Loach, whose work has consistently embodied what is best about British society.
Format:DVD
Yes 'Route Irish' is the name of the road to Bagdad International Airport, and is seen as the most dangerous road etc. However, we see very little of that and as others have commented, there is very little action indeed, in this film.
Ken Loach is an excellent director and I am a loyal fan, this film though does not really deliver what it promises to do, I may have been generous in a four star rating. So what is wrong?
Well it is about the death of a private security guard in Iraq (played by `comedian' John Bishop), and his best mate, who does not believe the official version. He sets out to find out who really killed his friend. He has been in a fight and whilst awaiting trial has his passport confiscated, therefore the entire story is based in Liverpool. He uses the internet and meetings with his former bosses to uncover more and more. The previous events are told in periodic flash backs, and are short but important.
This is a story about lies, deception, trust and profit. The private guards are referred to as `soldiers for peace' at one point, and not as soldiers for profit as is more accurate (they are on £10,000 per month). There are references to torture tactics and actual footage of fighting and victims from Iraq, but it does take its time getting there. The acting is all wsell above average and the whole thing is belivable but just a little unfulfilling.
I would like to pour praise on this, but I liked it more for being a Loach film, than being a film in itself. If you are a fan you may find merit here, if you are new to him, then you would be probably best advised to give this one a miss.
Ken Loach is an excellent director and I am a loyal fan, this film though does not really deliver what it promises to do, I may have been generous in a four star rating. So what is wrong?
Well it is about the death of a private security guard in Iraq (played by `comedian' John Bishop), and his best mate, who does not believe the official version. He sets out to find out who really killed his friend. He has been in a fight and whilst awaiting trial has his passport confiscated, therefore the entire story is based in Liverpool. He uses the internet and meetings with his former bosses to uncover more and more. The previous events are told in periodic flash backs, and are short but important.
This is a story about lies, deception, trust and profit. The private guards are referred to as `soldiers for peace' at one point, and not as soldiers for profit as is more accurate (they are on £10,000 per month). There are references to torture tactics and actual footage of fighting and victims from Iraq, but it does take its time getting there. The acting is all wsell above average and the whole thing is belivable but just a little unfulfilling.
I would like to pour praise on this, but I liked it more for being a Loach film, than being a film in itself. If you are a fan you may find merit here, if you are new to him, then you would be probably best advised to give this one a miss.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Thought provoking and tragic
Like many of the other reviewers, I am also a big Ken Loach fan. It's true that this is not his best film (for me two films that would fight for that position would be Land And... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Ben Kane
KEN LOACH- ANOTHER CLASSIC MOVIE
I hate the word 'gritty' when applied to drama-documentary work, I prefer words like 'edgy' and 'compulsive viewing,' terms which can certainly be applied to the latest DVD... Read more
Published 4 months ago by S. Taylor
Trapped with Scousers
A lot of Liverpudlians swearing, moaning and seeing conspiracy wherever they look. If I wanted this I could go into any pub on Merseyside. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Orchard Gate
A conspiracist's dream but decidedly average movie
The DVD cover hints at Hurt Locker-style action in Iraq. The reality though is far less enthralling, consisting of a couple of hours of boorish foul-mouthed Fergus effing and... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Cartimand
Mad mercenaries
Cinephiles will remember Loach from his famous beginnings with 'Poor Cow' a foul female character- matched with Loaches social realist style, shocked yet permeated the... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Samarees Sword
Hard hitting and provocative
Provocative, profound and hard-hitting. Blending between film, documentary and real footage of the war in Iraq, this film astounds with its ability to suggest what we all already... Read more
Published 7 months ago by N. Alterskye
in the fine tradition of ken loach
Very good film from Ken Loach, I was not sure about it on the first viewing but second time I saw it very good indeed.
Published 7 months ago by Mr. J. Mc Kenna
Loach delivers a Loachian film
Having discovered Ken Loach only a few years ago, through my French other half mainly, who tells me that, as many know, Ken Loach is big in France, as well as the rest of Europe, I... Read more
Published 8 months ago by Levlapozle
Good story.
I would have been disapointed if I'd gone to the cinema to watch this. As a tv movie or a weekly tv serial it is very good. Read more
Published 8 months ago by J. Lynch
Bad recommendation
Route Irish [DVD]
I made the mistake of ordering this on the recommendation of my brother-in-law. Read more
I made the mistake of ordering this on the recommendation of my brother-in-law. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Janet Stuckey
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