Irish cinema is completely saturated with woeful war stories about the loss of love, innocence, family and country. Too many times has the blood soaked story of the Easter Rising been told on our screens. With each new widely released Irish production comes more dreary tales of days gone by. There are many common themes and styles that reverberate through the annals of Irish film, but have we ever had a really great Irish comedy? Better yet, has there ever been a heartwarming, uplifting tale of love, friendship and adventure? Well, now there is.
The Runway tells the 'kind of' true story of Paco (Jamie Kierans), a young boy who encounters a crashed pilot one faithful night in Mallow in 1983. The mysterious pilot, Ernesto (Demian Bichir), is taken in by Paco and his mother where they awkwardly try to communicate as to where he's come from. When it all becomes clear, the townspeople of Mallow decide to help this strange visitor get back in the air by fixing his battered plane. As the town gets to work, Paco finds that, while they speak different languages, he has a true friend in Ernesto.
Written and directed by Ian Power, the beauty of The Runway lies in it's simplicity. With tight pacing, great dialogue, relatable characters and genuinely funny set pieces, it's hard not to be whisked away by the film. Everything is simple. Rather than be caught up in the fantastical, Power has grounded his film, making it accessable to pretty much any audience. The Runway is the type of film where you get just as much emotion, laughter or excitment from the back-and-forth conversation of two characters. This proves especially true with Paco and Ernesto. The two characters are mismatched in about every way; Paco's a little Irish boy whereas Ernesto is a hardened Columbian pilot. Yet, when the two share a scene together it's often highly emotional or funny. The chemistry between the actors is wonderful.
A special mention must be made for the soundtrack to the film. Not just comprised of Irish tunes (although they do squeeze in some stuff by U2), scattered throughout The Runway you'll hear early Jazz, Pop and Rock classics. Of course, as I've learned previously, the choice of music means nothing if it's poorly placed or too contrasting with the action of screen (I'm looking at you, London Boulevard), but Power and his editing team skillfully arrange each to fit like a glove.
There isn't much to fault here. The Runway is skillfully written, performed and directed by a wonderful team of homegrown and foreign talent. As I said above, it's light-hearted entertainment at it's finest; funny, exciting and, best of all, it's uplifting. The Runway is guaranteed to put a smile on your face when leaving the cinema. Er, that is unless you were expecting another Irish film about the Easter Rising.
The Runway tells the 'kind of' true story of Paco (Jamie Kierans), a young boy who encounters a crashed pilot one faithful night in Mallow in 1983. The mysterious pilot, Ernesto (Demian Bichir), is taken in by Paco and his mother where they awkwardly try to communicate as to where he's come from. When it all becomes clear, the townspeople of Mallow decide to help this strange visitor get back in the air by fixing his battered plane. As the town gets to work, Paco finds that, while they speak different languages, he has a true friend in Ernesto.
Written and directed by Ian Power, the beauty of The Runway lies in it's simplicity. With tight pacing, great dialogue, relatable characters and genuinely funny set pieces, it's hard not to be whisked away by the film. Everything is simple. Rather than be caught up in the fantastical, Power has grounded his film, making it accessable to pretty much any audience. The Runway is the type of film where you get just as much emotion, laughter or excitment from the back-and-forth conversation of two characters. This proves especially true with Paco and Ernesto. The two characters are mismatched in about every way; Paco's a little Irish boy whereas Ernesto is a hardened Columbian pilot. Yet, when the two share a scene together it's often highly emotional or funny. The chemistry between the actors is wonderful.
A special mention must be made for the soundtrack to the film. Not just comprised of Irish tunes (although they do squeeze in some stuff by U2), scattered throughout The Runway you'll hear early Jazz, Pop and Rock classics. Of course, as I've learned previously, the choice of music means nothing if it's poorly placed or too contrasting with the action of screen (I'm looking at you, London Boulevard), but Power and his editing team skillfully arrange each to fit like a glove.
There isn't much to fault here. The Runway is skillfully written, performed and directed by a wonderful team of homegrown and foreign talent. As I said above, it's light-hearted entertainment at it's finest; funny, exciting and, best of all, it's uplifting. The Runway is guaranteed to put a smile on your face when leaving the cinema. Er, that is unless you were expecting another Irish film about the Easter Rising.
