Image source: Wikimedia

+

Year of release: 1997
Director: Neil Jordan
Writers: Patrick McCabe & Neil Jordan (screenplay), Patrick McCabe (screenplay)
Starring: Stephen Rea, Fiona Shaw, Eamonn Owens, etc.

For more information on “The Butcher Boy”, visit Wikipedia and/or IMDb

General impression:
So intense, so expressive! I cried almost all through this movie. It shows why some kids are… how they are. It shows, but does not explicitly tell – if you see, and I mean REALLY SEE, you’ll feel and understand the story; if you don’t, you’ll probably just see a crazy kid, not his need for love and stability, and his undeveloped, inexperienced, desperate way of begging for them. “The Butcher Boy” is a sad story roughly about the “monsters” we, as a society, create, about the deeply disturbing effect that certain factors have on a child’s psyche. When adults are caught in selfishness, self-absorption, lack of care and compassion, how does a child cope with life?

Highlights:
The movie shows a level of understanding that transcends words – and that makes it brilliant.

Downside:
Nothing wrong with this movie, in my book.

Would I see it again? – Yes

My Rating (1 to 10): 9.5

Recommended: Yes

Suggestion:
If you’re the sensitive type, have handkerchiefs close – lots of them.