Thanks for mentioning this one, and the others, Zabladowski.

The title of this one intrigued me even before I read your synopsis here, and this is the one of them all that I want to see most. I have a few other movies about sadistic headmasters and/or deplorable conditions in schools and orphanages, and it seems to me that no one could watch a movie like this and then turn a blind eye to what has gone on in days past in such places. Thus, I think this is one instance for sure where the making of films has had a lot to do with reforms in society's thinking. Public scrutiny brought about by the consciousness-raising efforts of certain filmmakers who tell stories with meaning, rather than just going for the quick profits of more formulated movie scripts, is the best cure I know for some of the world's ills, nowadays.

I hear that Charles Dickens had that same kind of effect on his society as an author in his day. From the synopsis if this movie, though, I don't guess the administrators of the Irish Catholic orphanages took the message in Oliver Twist to heart. :erm:

Love,
Sir J

added a profile for this movie

'soles, I can't thank you enough for letting us know where to buy this dvd.  I just watched it, and it's one of the most disturbing, yet powerful and moving, movies that I've ever seen.

The very first comment Brother John (Iain Glen) makes to Mr. Franklin (played by Aidan Quinn), the only "lay person" who'd ever been brought in to teach at this reformatory run by Catholic brothers:

"The creatures you are going to teach... are not to be confused with intelligent human beings.  The only thing these boys understand is strength.  Should you fail to employ that strength, they'll eat you alive."

The man who said that turned out to be perhaps the most sadistic and brutal person towards boys that I've ever seen portrayed in a movie.  Hate would be too soft of a word to describe how you'll feel about him when you watch this movie.  His performance was more than disturbing, so I guess he played the part well.

The boys in the movie were even better playing their characters, and no person who sees this film will be able to ignore their plight, or wish you could do something to protect them from the Brother John's of the world. The two that grab your heart the most and endure the greatest abuse are in the photo above that Zab posted, <b>Chris Newman</b> as Patrick Delaney 743, and <b>John Travers</b> as Liam Mercer 636. (Yes, the boys are known only by their numbers by Brother John and others of his ilk.)  I also got very emotional watching scenes that included <b>Andrew Simpson</b> as Gerard Peters 458, and <b>Michael Sloan</b> who played his little brother Sean Peters 568.  All of those boys were very good actors, and I believed that they really were their characters as I watched.

A song they sang as they walked through the town nearby with Mr. Franklin:

<i>Raggy boys are born in sin
Raggy boys are small and thin
Raggy boys are skin and bones
Raggy boys.</i>

My heart certainly went out to them, and it was good to see the note at the end of the movie that the reformatory and industrial school system in Ireland finally was closed down in 1984.  It's hard to sit and imagine the number of boys that were abused in those reformatories from the time of this movie in 1939 until then, though.   

Love,
Sir J

Lucky bastards.

A sad movie that made me angry.  I wanted to beat the bloody heck out of Brother John.  He was sick.  I had me own share of beatings, but certainly not like that.