The Young Offenders (2016)

Two teenage boys cycle 160km on stolen bikes pursued by police to find a missing bale of cocaine worth 7 million euro. Set around the real event of Ireland's biggest cocaine seizure in 2007 of 440 million euro.

Director:

Peter Foott

Writer:

Peter Foott

Stars:

Alex Murphy, Chris Walley, Hilary Rose

11 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Alex Murphy	...	Conor MacSweeney
Chris Walley	...	Jock Murphy
Hilary Rose	...	Mairead MacSweeney
Dominic MacHale	...	Sergeant Healy
P.J. Gallagher	...	Ray the Drug Dealer
Shane Casey	...	Billy Murphy
Pascal Scott	...	Farmer
Ciaran Bermingham	...	Superintendent Flynn
Michael Sands	...	Jock's Dad
Cora Fenton	...	Jock's Mother
Stephen O'Connor	...	Angry Dad
Fionula Linehan	...	DIY Cashier
Wesley O'Duinn	...	Fish Man
Antoinette Hilliard	...	Fish Head Woman
Tommy Harris	...	Big Mouth (as Thomas Harris)

Storyline

Inspired by the true story of Ireland's biggest cocaine seizure in 2007, The Young Offenders is a comedy road movie about best friends Conor and Jock, two inner-city teenagers from Cork who dress the same, act the same, and even have the same bum-fluff mustaches. Jock is a legendary bike thief who plays a daily game of cat-and-mouse with the bike-theft-obsessed Garda Sergeant Healy. When a drug-trafficking boat capsizes off the coast of West Cork and 61 bales of cocaine, each worth 7 million euro, are seized, word gets out that there is a bale missing. The boys steal two bikes and go on a road trip hoping to find a missing bale which they can sell so as to escape their troubled home lives....But Sergeant Healy is in hot pursuit.

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Plot Keywords:

cocaine | teenager | ireland | thief | police | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Crime | Drama

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Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official Twitter

Country:

Ireland

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 September 2016 (Ireland)

Also Known As:

The Young Offenders

Filming Locations:

English Market, Cork City, Ireland

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$14,862

Company Credits

Production Co:

Screen Ireland, Vico Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This original version of "The Young Offenders" is actually set in a "flashback" version of 2007, although both Jock and Conor are 15. The same entire set of characters, with new additions, would re-appear in the tv series version of the BBC Three/RTE/Vico Film re-boot, but confusingly, some of their personalities, circumstances and situations would be slightly revised, and re-used. Both the original film, and later tv series could actually be watched as legitimate alternate parallel universe versions of the overall story arc and characters.

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Goofs

At 25:35 Mairead offers the customer another fish head. The customer says "It's a salmon head". It is definitely NOT a salmon head! :)

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Quotes

Jock Murphy: If you are under the age of sixteen you are classified as a young offender which basically means you can't get in trouble.

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Crazy Credits

In the start of the movie when Conor said some "dickhead" on a roof dropped a hammer on his dads head, at the credits he is listed down as "dickhead on the roof"

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Connections

References Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)

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Soundtracks

Last Man Standing
by Andrew Bojanic, Phil T. Kenidis, Randall Cooke, Elizabeth Hooper, Dirty Dick
Extreme Music Library Ltd./IMRO

User Reviews

Funniest Irish Film in Years.

This film is true to the essence of Cork and depicts its salt of the earth characters. Being from the city there was an extra layer of appreciation as a viewer: when the shipment was cast into the ocean a bale did go missing. I'm sure there were individuals who sought a fortune like the protagonists do in this film.

I was skeptical of watching the film as I was expecting it to be drawn out, filled with obvious one liners. I was happily surprised to discover I was wrong, the film creates two lovable rogue characters who are aware at times of their failings. No cheap jokes here, the dialogue was to the point without being obvious. I didn't expect the direction the film took, and am happy to see that the film is internationally well received, winning awards in LA, Texas and London.

If you are unsure, watch the movie trailer. Comedy gold with a tongue in cheek view, beautifully shot along West Cork. Don't take the characters as true representations of Corkonians, as this is a comedy. All aspects of this film are seamless: editing, dialogue, location, casting and soundtrack. Fantastic film, refreshingly not the typical Irish cinema most would expect from Ireland.