Belfast, 15 August 1969. Surrounded by sporadic violence and growing danger, nine-year-old Buddy finds himself confronted with the ugly reality of sectarian conflict. And, as the suffocating stranglehold of increasing turmoil tightens around his once-peaceful working-class neighbourhood, Buddy tries his best to understand The Troubles--after all, someone must be responsible for forcing people to flee their homes. Now, Buddy's family must come face to face with a nearly imposs... (Full plot summary below)
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Belfast, 15 August 1969. Surrounded by sporadic violence and growing danger, nine-year-old Buddy finds himself confronted with the ugly reality of sectarian conflict. And, as the suffocating stranglehold of increasing turmoil tightens around his once-peaceful working-class neighbourhood, Buddy tries his best to understand The Troubles--after all, someone must be responsible for forcing people to flee their homes. Now, Buddy's family must come face to face with a nearly impossible, life-altering decision: stay or start packing?
Leave your thoughts about Belfast.
| Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperBelfast is deserving of double-digit Oscar nominations, from the picture itself to Branagh’s directing and writing to the editing and cinematography to any number of the performances, with Ciarán Hinds and Judi Dench near locks in the supporting categories. This is the best movie I’ve seen so far in 2021. |
| San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleEveryone has a story from childhood that remains vivid in memory, and that feels important enough to immortalize in art. But few people have the ability to get their story out from their minds and onto the page, the stage or the screen. Yet when that does happen, and when it’s done right, you can get something original and heartfelt, such as Kenneth Branagh’s autobiographical Belfast, one of the glories of this year’s cinema. |
| TheWrapSteve PondThe film feels true in the way it must be exploring Branagh’s memories of a tumultuous and confusing time, and the way it pays tribute to a vibrant community as that community is irrevocably changed. |
| The PlaylistMonica CastilloThe parts of the movie that are going to resonate the most have the pacing they need to bring up one’s own memories of listening to a grandparent’s advice, of doing something you shouldn’t have to impress someone, or working up the nerve to talk to someone you liked. Perhaps these resurfaced memories are an unintended souvenir of visiting Branagh’s “Belfast,” but it’s one that may stick with moviegoers for quite some time after the credits roll. |
| The GuardianPeter BradshawLove letters to the past are always addressed to an illusion, yet this is such a seductive piece of myth-making from Branagh. |
| New Orleans Times-PicayuneMike ScottTaken all together, Branagh’s film is in its own special way like a cinematic equivalent of the Irish brogue that fills it: It’s lovely, it’s lyrical and it’s next to impossible not to be swept up by its charms. |
| ABC NewsPeter TraversNo wonder Kenneth Branagh’s funny, touching and vital look at his own coming of age in Northern Ireland’s turbulent capital city is the Oscar frontrunner for Best Picture. No movie this year cuts a clearer, truer path of the heart. It’s his personal best. |
| Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzIt’s a heartfelt salute from Branagh to his hometown, and what he loved there. |
| Paste MagazineTara BennettExperiencing Branagh come full circle with Belfast is like getting an invitation to observe an artist come to terms with his roots. There’s the expected nostalgia, but also the graceful observation of the wisdom and clarity acquired with the power of hindsight. |
| CNNBrian LowryBranagh has directed all kinds of movies over the past 30 years, from his frequent adaptations of Shakespeare to "Cinderella" and the aforementioned "Thor." It's perhaps appropriate, though, that his most personal film would also turn out to be his crowning achievement. |
