St. Patrick: The Irish Legend (2000)

A young Christian boy attends a druid worship that is attacked by invading Irish tribes. Taken captive, he is taken back to Ireland to become a slave. Enduring many hardships, he finds ... See full summary »

Director:

Robert Hughes

Writers:

Martin Duffy, Robert Hughes

Stars:

Patrick Bergin, Luke Griffin, Alan Bates

Cast

Credited cast:
Patrick Bergin	...	Patrick
Luke Griffin	...	Young Patrick
Alan Bates	...	Calpornius
Susannah York	...	Concessa
Malcolm McDowell	...	Quentin
Eamonn Owens	...	Benignus
Chris McHallem	...	Auxilius
Michael Caven	...	Iserninus
Stephen Brennan	...	Briain
Adam Goodwin	...	Brother Peter
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Peter Byrne	...	Ship Captain
Michael Carven
Ned Dennehy	...	Lucet Mael
James Flynn	...	Eli
Richard Gibson	...	Bishop of London

Storyline

A young Christian boy attends a druid worship that is attacked by invading Irish tribes. Taken captive, he is taken back to Ireland to become a slave. Enduring many hardships, he finds comfort and eventually salvation in his faith. After several years, he escapes back to England, where he joins a convent to prove his faith. His greatest desire is to return to Ireland to convert the Irish to Christianity. Years later, he is given the opportunity. Upon setting foot on Irish soil, all snakes are automatically driven from the land. He then overcomes many obstacles, including disagreements with the British Cardinal (Malcolm McDowell), to fulfill his destiny, and ultimately being given Sainthood.

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Plot Keywords:

character name as title | st. patrick character | five word title | actor shares first name with character | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Fantasy

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 March 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Der Heilige der grünen Insel

Filming Locations:

Ireland

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fox Family Channel, Sharpmist III Ltd.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Sir Alan Bates was first asked to play Bishop Quentin.

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Goofs

Several of the companions of St. Patrick are shown wearing what is obviously a Franciscan habit. St. Francis of Assisi was not born until 1182 and did not gather an order around him until the 1200s, 800 years after St. Patrick.

User Reviews

A wonderful portrait of Ireland's Saint Patron.

St. Patrick is probably one of the best known saints in the Western World, and certainly America's most revered one, his shamrocks and greenery covering New York and other great cities on his day. But even those devote Irish who proudly parade in or out of uniform, will learn something about the man who brought the Gospel to Ireland, in this splendid biopic which takes Patrick as a young Christian Scot who is captured and taken to Ireland as a slave, only to fall in love with these heathen people, and dedicate his whole life to save them from paganism.

The film is supported by a splendid cast, but its principal merit is the sensible, unobtrusive way in which it mixes the human, heroic story of the man, with the necessary miracles of the saint, and his duel of prodigies with the heathen druids is casually inserted in the more factual story of his labours, not without catering to the Irish by depicting a rapacious "British church" in perhaps the only departure from strict historical truth, since Patrick lived long before the English considered themselves such. Which doesn't prevent Malcolm McDowell from adding another splendid villain to his gallery, as the ambitious and autarchic Bishop Quentin.