Everything in This Country Must (2004)

Northern Ireland. Soldiers, through inattention, run into a car with a woman and her young son. Two years later, a horse is stuck in the river, and the soldiers happen along, but the ... See full summary »

Director:

Gary McKendry

Writers:

Colum McCann, Gary McKendry

Stars:

Sam Spruell, Gerry Doherty, Karly Greene

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 3 wins.

Cast

Credited cast:
Sam Spruell	...	Stevie
Gerry Doherty	...	Father
Karly Greene	...	Katie
James Doran	...	Hayknife
Alan Heyburn	...	Longgrasses
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jamie Martin	...	Saracen Commander

Storyline

Northern Ireland. Soldiers, through inattention, run into a car with a woman and her young son. Two years later, a horse is stuck in the river, and the soldiers happen along, but the horse's owner is violently opposed to their help; he relents, but his hostility is obvious when his daughter invites them inside afterward to warm up.

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Genres:

Drama | Short

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 August 2004 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Belfast, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$250,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Six Mile Productions LLC

Technical Specs

Runtime:

20 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

Featured in The 77th Annual Academy Awards (2005)

User Reviews

The Trouble With The Troubles!

I saw this film during the Dublin Film Festival, with both director and writer sitting behind me, and it had been billed as an Academy Award nominee, so the feeling of pressure on me to like it was substantial! Not surprisingly though, it left me cold, as films that's subject matter is Northern Ireland usually do! Now I was a little biased into not liking it as the plot line - a girl who has to choose between her Catholic father or the British soldier who saves her horse's life - didn't captivate me. Almost instantly it is obvious it is based on a short story, the narration is wordy and unnatural-sounding. Then we get the identikit characters - the British Army soldiers, comprised of the geezer, the quiet one & the embittered old pro; and the father, a Brit-hating Catholic man. Even for a short film there is no character development, the girl is two dimensional at best & the father is poorly written. Even the finale left me cold, instead of being dramatic it was slightly silly.

The look of the film is excellent however, it is a stylish piece. However, there is no originality here, and the fact that this has been nominated for an Oscar just shows that America are lapping up the stereotypical Troubles stories as much as ever.