I’ve been lucky enough to travel all over the world and meet all sorts of people. By far, no group of people have been more welcoming and wonderful than the Irish, quick to offer a helping hand to anyone who appeared lost or troubled in any way. While the citizens could not have been more welcoming to tourists/outsiders, Small Things Like These is a sobering reminder of how that same generosity of spirit was compromised to their own people for decades and decades. And who better to carry that pain than our most recent Oscar winner Cillian Murphy?
Murphy stars as Bill Furlong, a well respected coal miner in 1980s Ireland. Happily married to his wife Eileen (Eileen Walsh) and boasting 5 well educated happy daughters, Bill also makes sure his workers are paid for and his customers get their heating coals just in time for the really cold upcoming Christmas season. However, one of his customers is the local convent run by Mother Superior Sister Mary (Emily Watson), and day to day interactions with that place have left Bill unable to sleep, conjuring up memories of his past self (Louis Kirwan) and his own fraught upbringing from his single mother Sarah (Agnes O’Casey). The more Bill goes to the convent, the more he’s willed to do something, despite all kinds of warnings from friends and family members, who’ve been on the wrong end of the convent’s unchecked power and money on the community.
The Magdalene Laundry scandal in Ireland is one of the great blemishes in the country’s history, forcing sex workers/orphans/basically ostracized women out of the community into horrifying labor camps justified by the Protestant and Catholic Churches, as well as the government. That amount of power makes sure NO one steps up and challenges you in any way, as shown in the big highlight sequence in the film, dripping with tension as Emily Watson gives the most menacing Christmas present of all time. That level of societal stripping of personal agency forces every Irish person who knows something is wrong to quietly stew in their despondent, conflicted emotions about their role in these institutions. Small Things Like These captures that deep well of melancholy only the Irish can carry, burying those feelings deep inside themselves in search of good things in life to offset that type of long term pain. I’d almost prefer the title of the film to be silent rage, as everyone is so scared to say or do anything they only dare whisper their feelings in private wife/husband bedroom conversations. I know the films comes from a place of truth, being half Irish myself, seeing those deep penetrating eyes hiding something you dare not mention or you get yelled at about something no one wants to talk about and you don’t understand as a kid.
So who has the perfect eyes to carry pain on a minute to minute basis? As good as Cillian Murphy was in his award winning Oppenheimer performance, he’s even better here. All the acting work is internal and quiet, as Murphy makes those giant bags of coal he carries pittance compared to what his soul is burdened by. Each bag hoist, uphill walk, hand washing, or quiet stare is filled with anguish, as his Bill tries to muster the courage to do something to unburden his soul, without suffering immense societal and personal consequences for his girls. On the other side of the coin is Emily Watson and Clare Dunne, who turn into as fearsome mob enforcers as Tony Soprano or Tommy DeVito with their chilling ominous use of menacing quiet threats.
The last of the Magdalene Laundries closed in 1996. Thankfully, Ireland’s populous became a bunch of Bill Furlongs and stood up, to do something. That level of righteous anger has manifested all over the country since, turning into a beacon of progressive belief and aid to their fellow man in the last couple decades. So if you’re planning a European excursion sometime soon, give Ireland a shot. I promise you’ll be welcomed with a big heart, and what I consider to be one of the greatest accents in the world offering you a pint or two to have some fun and be among new friends.