Tara Road (2005)

Two women -- one American, one Irish -- swap houses and alter the course of their lives.

Director:

Gillies MacKinnon

Writers:

Cynthia Cidre (screenplay), Shane Connaughton (screenplay),

Stars:

Olivia Williams, Andie MacDowell, Johnny Brennan

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Olivia Williams	...	Ria
Andie MacDowell	...	Marilyn
Johnny Brennan	...	Brian
Iain Glen	...	Danny
Jennifer Buckley	...	Secretary
Stephen Rea	...	Colm
Virginia Cole	...	Mrs. Doyle
Maria Doyle Kennedy	...	Rosemary
Sarah Bolger	...	Annie
Eileen Colgan	...	Nora
Jean-Marc Barr	...	Andy
Alan Devlin	...	Barney
Enrique Fonseca	...	Limo Driver
Jia Francis	...	Heidi (as Jia Frances)
Brenda Fricker	...	Mona

Storyline

Two grieving women - Ria, a Dublin mom whose husband discloses he's in love with a woman already pregnant, and Marilyn, a Connecticut Yankee whose son has died - swap houses for a couple months. Marilyn finds solace in Ria's garden and becomes friends with Colm, a local with a restaurant and his own demons. Ria gets a job cooking, has a date or two, and gradually comes out of her shell. Meanwhile, Ria's husband Danny has problems, economic and personal, that may bring more ruin to those close to him. The house on Tara Road comes to stand for the past, for possibilities, and for what can be lost.

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Plot Keywords:

connecticut | restaurant | two timing | gardener | party | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes you must lose your life to find a new one...

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for thematic elements, language and some sensuality

Details

Country:

Ireland

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 October 2005 (Ireland)

Also Known As:

Ein Haus in Irland

Filming Locations:

Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

£73,150 (UK) (7 October 2005)

Gross:

£199,986 (UK) (14 October 2005)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Noel Pearson Productions, Pageturner Productions, Sarah Radclyffe Productions Limited

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Maeve Binchy, author of the novel on which the movie is based, makes an uncredited cameo as a restaurant patron. She can be glimpsed seated at the end of the bar, right after the scene where Ria offers to take the job advertised at the restaurant cashier's counter.

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Connections

Referenced in The Making of 'Tara Road' (2005)

User Reviews

Well it worked for me

Given that I have read the book (at least once) and loved it, I felt that this made the transition to the Big Screen fairly painlessly, after all it was a Big Book and time is limited. I went with someone who had not it, and we both enjoyed the film. I didn't find the acting hammy nor the shortcuts overly intrusive. A six-part drama would have covered all points better obviously but this movie told the tale adequately, the characters were all well-drawn and the mood of the book translated well onto the screen. I loved that we could get the ambiance of each home quickly and the circle of friends that each woman had. The kids were great - my only criticism would perhaps be that Danny was not quite smooth enough; it was hard to fall for his legendary charm.