The movie that “awakened” Cillian Murphy to a new kind of cinema
Two decades into his career as an actor, Cillian Murphy has mastered his profession, becoming one of the most sought-after performers of his generation. Having given some of the best performances in contemporary cinema, Murphy’s future reputation is more than assured.
Any actor courted on several occasions by Christopher Nolan ought to consider themselves a dab hand in front of the camera and as well as starring for the Dark Knight, Dunkirk and Oppenheimer director, Murphy has also played in the likes of 28 Days Later, Red Eye and Intermission early in his career.
Shortly after Murphy appeared in those previously mentioned movies, though, he starred in a film that would undoubtedly change his opinion of the medium of cinema. In 2006, Murphy collaborated with legendary English director Ken Loach for his Irish war drama The Wind That Shakes the Barley.
In a discussion with Interview magazine, Murphy admitted that The Wind That Shakes The Barley was an “important film” for him “in terms of making a film with a very distinct point of view. It was a very important film in Ireland”. Loach’s movie takes part in the Irish War of Independence and the Irish Civil War and tells of two County Cork brothers who join the Irish Republican Army to fight for Irish independence from the United Kingdom.
Murphy explained that working with Loach on the 2006 war film “awakened me to the possibility that you could make an entertaining piece of work that also spoke with a strong political voice”.
He added, “It’s very, very rare that you get an opportunity to do that, and Ken is one of the few remaining filmmakers that can.”
The Irish actor spoke of the journey he took to play Damien O’Donovan in The Wind That Shakes The Barley in an interview with GQ, and he pointed out the fact that he had auditioned for Loach on “four or five rigorous” occasions. As an Irishman, Murphy admitted he “obviously knew about that period of history but not in-depth, not to the extent that I subsequently learned about it.”
In playing a character in Loach’s movie that explored the nature of the Irish War of Independence, Murphy gained a deeper understanding of himself as an Irishman but also an awakening to the possibility of being able to make a kind of movie that was at once not only entertaining but also politically important in the process, as many of Loach’s films often are.
“He’s again, a master of cinema, you know, master of world cinema, so yeah, it was a great privilege to play a part like that as an Irishman and then also as an actor to work with Ken Loach,” Murphy signed off on his thoughts of the iconic English director in the GQ interview, proving his lasting impression.
The Wind That Shakes The Barley won the Palme d’Or at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival, where Loach has often been praised as one of the greatest living auteurs. Written by Paul Lavery with a number of parallels to Walter Macken’s 1964 novel The Scorching Wind, Loach’s work ended up becoming the director’s greatest box office success while also setting a record in Ireland as the highest-grossing Irish-produced movie, at least until the record was taken by John Michael McDonagh’s The Guard.
