The Siege of Jadotville (2016)

Irish Commandant Pat Quinlan leads a stand off with troops against French and Belgian Mercenaries in the Congo during the early 1960s.

Director:

Richie Smyth

Writers:

Kevin Brodbin, Declan Power (based on the book by)

Stars:

Richard Lukunku, Danny Sapani, Andrew Stock

4 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Richard Lukunku	...	Patrice Lumumba
Danny Sapani	...	Moise Tshombe
Andrew Stock	...	Man in a White Suit
Mark Strong	...	Conor Cruise O'Brien
Jamie Dornan	...	Patrick Quinlan
Fionn O'Shea	...	William Reidy
Sam Keeley	...	Bill (Sniper) Ready
Ronan Raftery	...	John Gorman
Mike Noble	...	Charles Cooley
Jason O'Mara	...	Jack Prendergast
Fiona Glascott	...	Carmel Quinlan
Melissa Haiden	...	Beautiful Nurse
Jordan Mifsud	...	John Donnelly
Conor Quinlan	...	Patrick Joyce
Charlie Kelly	...	Walter Hegarty

Storyline

In 1961, the UN sends an Irish peacekeeper troop commanded by Commandant Pat Quinlan to Katanga, in Congo, to protect the inhabitants of the mining town of Jadotville in the beginning of a civil war. Meanwhile the UN advisor Dr. Conor Cruise O'Brien launches a military attack named Operation Morthor against the French and Belgian mercenaries. Soon there is a reprisal from the mercenaries and Quinlan and his men are left under siege by a huge number of Katangese and mercenary troops. Will the Irish soldiers resist the attack?

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Plot Keywords:

congo | civil war | africa | 1960s | mercenary | 

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Genres:

Action | Biography | Drama | Thriller | War

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Details

Country:

Ireland South Africa

Language:

English Irish French

Release Date:

7 October 2016 (USA)

Also Known As:

Jadotville

Filming Locations:

South Africa

Company Credits

Production Co:

Parallel Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Color:

Color (ACES)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The real Jean Schramme was a far cry from the gritty figure with a goatee seen in the movie. Neat and clean, he considered himself to be "above" the other mercenary leaders in Katanga, believing himself to be a planter and administrator in uniform only to defend his adopted homeland. He detested adventurers like the French and Belgian mercenaries who came from Europe to fight for Katanga.

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Goofs

The Irish NCO is seen firing a Swedish m/45 sub-machine gun from the hip. This may seem like a stylistic action movie choice. However, the Swedish soldier manual - when that weapon was in use - did in fact detail one stance for hip-fire. The stance was named "mowing". Its efficiency can be discussed, but the stance was none the less taught.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Pat Quinlan: [narrating] I once heard a man say that, in Africa, the sun is like a furnace that either melts you or forges you.

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Soundtracks

Rakish Paddy, The Wild Irishman
Arranged by Kevin Crehan
Performed by Kevin Crehan, Danny Taylor and Hal Rosenfeld
Published by Dogwood Flower Music

User Reviews

True story of Irish UN peace-keepers embroiled in a civil war in Africa in 1961

Based on true events, this film is a shock to the system because what it reveals had been meticulously covered up for over 40 years. The film highlights one of the most important roles ever played by the Irish Defence Forces as United Nations peace keepers. All the more astonishing given the "battle virginity and inexperience of the Irish troops, the menacing threat and overwhelming numbers of hardened ex-Forign Legion French and African mercenaries there to defend the interests of the powerful international mining companies. Superbly acted by a virtually unknown cast, the tension mounts from the moment the troops find themselves billeted in the uranium rich mining Katanga outpost of Jadotville, in the province of Kinshasa in the southern rump of the fledgling Republic of The Congo.

In the background the Cold War is at its most dangerous as the Western, Eastern political blocs posture between the emerging United Nations trying to establish its credibility on the international stage. The civil war in this strategically important supplier to the nuclear armaments race is at its height, and an Irish diplomat Conor Cruise O'Brien (Mark Strong) is sent to Katanga to handle the situation on behalf of the UN. It is impossible to fathom how the Irish commandant (Jamie Dornan) in charge on the ground can be expected to keep the peace and hold the area assigned to the poorly equipped Irish troops. While tension mounts locally, high stakes and political posturing take place in the background stretching the ubiquitous tension even further. I'm still pinching myself with the realisation that all this happened within my lifetime and never knew a thing about it until viewing this spell-binding, tension filled action drama.This massively impacting film would be well worth seeing again , if only to focus next time on the drama itself without the distraction or initial shock of the unfolding historical events portrayed.