The Mighty Celt DVD: Finally available in the USA!
Posted at 6:42 AM (PDT) on Friday, June 27, 2008

Cinequest Distribution is releasing The Mighty Celt which was filmed in Ireland and released in 2005. The DVD will be available on July 15, ten days before the July 25 opening of The X-Files: I Want to Believe.

For her role in this film, Gillian won the People's Choice Award at the Irish Film and Television Awards in 2005.

The director of The Mighty Celt, Pearse Elliott, said: "I'm absolutely delighted to hear Gillian Anderson has won the People's Choice Award for Pantene Best International Actress at this year's IFTAs. It was a pleasure working with Gillian and the award is thoroughly deserved.” (Regional Film & Video, 08.11.05)


Reviews:

"The story is so slender it almost crumbles between your fingers. The romance between Anderson’s single mum and Carlyle’s newly freed prisoner is made of sterner stuff, if only because they wear their unspoken grief like Marley’s chains. The winning ingredient is how these lonely adults square their differences for the sake of the young boy.

Who would have thought that the wellbeing of a dog would inspire the first example of Peace Process cinema? All credit to the exotic cast for trampling the issues that famous locals fear to tread. The accents are impeccable. Anderson is faultless as a bitter, loving mother. Carlyle is terrific as the wise lag, hailed as a hero for an act of terror he would rather forget." -- James Christopher, The Times Online


"The film essentially belongs to its actors and characterisations, with fine performances from Tyrone McKenna as Donal, Ken Stott as Joe and Robert Carlyle as O. But the shining light is Gillian Anderson, virtually unrecognisable as Belfast single mum Kate, all boobs, roll-up fags and high hair. Her short-vowelled, nasal accent is nothing short of the real thing.

Entirely shot on location, The Mighty Celt is a semi-autobiographical homage to Elliott's home town, drawing on his passion for breeding dogs and injected with his own take on post-conflict politics. It's a moving story of atonement, told through sensitive characterisation, and using paradox to underline Elliott's particular political bug-bears." -- Rebecca Kemp, Film Ireland

The Mighty Celt on Sundance Again
Posted at 1:47 PM (PST) on Tuesday, March 14, 2006

The Sundance Channel will air an Irish triple feature including the films Borstal Boy, THE MIGHTY CELT and Mickybo and Me on St. Patrick's Day (Friday, March 17). Check your local listings!

The Mighty Celt at 2 U.S.A. Film Festivals
Posted at 2:16 PM (PST) on Monday, March 6, 2006

2006 SF Irish Film Festival (March 8, 9, 10 & 12, 2006)

Festival Information: 415-495-7380

The Mighty Celt will be screened at the Roxie Cinema on March 10, 2006 (Friday), 9:15 p.m.
3117 16th Street at Valencia, San Francisco

AND

at the La Peña Cultural Center on March 12, 2006 (Sunday) - 6:00 p.m.
3105 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley

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30th Cleveland International Film Festival (March 16 - 26, 2006)
Tower City Cinemas at Tower City Center

The Mighty Celt

March 23, 2006 (Thursday)
Theater: RED
7:30 pm to 8:50 pm

March 24, 2006 (Friday)
Theater: GREEN
12:15 pm to 1:35 pm

The Mighty Celt on the Sundance Channel
Posted at 12:13 PM (PST) on Tuesday, January 3, 2006

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

For those of you with access to the Sundance Channel, The Mighty Celt is scheduled to air this month.

Click here or here for the schedule.

Thanks, Laurra!

The Mighty Celt DVD in the UK
Posted at 7:41 AM (PST) on Sunday, December 4, 2005

List Price: £15.99
Our Price: £11.99
You Save: £4.00 (25%)

Release date: January 30, 2006.

DVD Region 2 encoding: Europe, Japan, South Africa and the Middle East including Egypt.

Not yet available: you may pre-order this title. We will dispatch it to you when it is released by the studio.

Free UK delivery on orders over £15 with Super Saver Delivery.

We have no information yet as to when "The Mighty Celt" will be released in North America.

IFTA People's Choice Award
Posted at 5:00 AM (PST) on Monday, November 7, 2005

Congratulations to Gillian for winning the People's Choice Award at the Irish Film and Television Awards.



Gillian's thank you speech:

"Hello! And, I just wanted to say thank you very very much for this award. Thank you especially to the Irish public who, apparently, have voted for me after they heard me speak with an Irish accent - so, that's a very good thing. And thank you to everybody at the Irish Film and Television Awards. And, thank you very much for this beautiful statue 'cos it's actually really classy looking and (laughs) I can't wait to put it on the mantlepiece. I need a bit of gold around! I'm just really thrilled by this and I really appreciate it. It's nice to be included in something international. So have a good evening and thank you."

The director of The Mighty Celt, Pearse Elliott, said: "I'm absolutely delighted to hear Gillian Anderson has won the People's Choice Award for Pantene Best International Actress at this year's IFTAs. It was a pleasure working with Gillian and the award is thoroughly deserved.” (Regional Film & Video, 08.11.05)

Pictures and a video clip are available to view in our gallery, courtesy of Adry, Chew, and Lara Joy.

TMC at the Fort Lauderdale Film Festival
Posted at 2:10 PM (PDT) on Tuesday, October 11, 2005

The 20th Annual Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival
October 14 - November 20, 2005

The Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival presents the most compelling and thought-provoking international films, hosts special tributes and seminars and introduces some of the greatest talents to South Florida audiences. The 37-day FLIFF festival screens over 100 films from Boca Raton to Miami and is the longest film festival in the world.

The Mighty Celt:

Screening Time
Friday, October 21, 6:00 PM
Cinema Paradiso, CP-801

Tickets are $8 general admission, $7 seniors and students, $5 FLIFF members

Thanks, xfrgg!

Three more nominations for The Mighty Celt
Posted at 2:13 PM (PDT) on Tuesday, October 4, 2005

Three more nominations for The Mighty Celt

Irish Film & Television Awards 2005

The Awards are a platform to honour and celebrate outstanding Irish creativity, talent and achievement; and to set an Irish standard for young crafts people to aspire to in the future.

Jury Categories Shortlisted Nominees:

Best Irish Film Mickybo & Me The Mighty Celt Pavee Lackeen Tara Road Trouble With Sex

Best Cinematography Seamus Deasy - The Mighty Celt Brendan Galvin - Flight Of The Phoenix Seamus Mc Garvey - Sahara Owen Mc Polin - Trouble With Sex

Best Script for Film Anthony Byrne - Short Order Pearse Elliott - The Mighty Celt Terry George - Hotel Rwanda Terry Loane - Mickybo & Me

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The Mighty Celt Director Slams DVD Pirates
Posted at 9:31 AM (PDT) on Monday, September 12, 2005

The People
September 11, 2005
Ulster Edition

I'm Disgusted; Ulster Film Director Slams DVD Pirates for Killing Cinema
By Liz Trainor

Top Ulster film-maker Pearse Elliott has blamed DVD bootleggers for "killing off the movie experience" in Northern Ireland. Belfast-born Pearse - whose latest movie The Mighty Celt is playing in cinemas across the UK - claims there is a growing bootleg culture which makes it harder to get people into the cinema.

"Most people in Northern Ireland have seen my movies but many of them wait for the DVD - and I suspect some of them are pirate copies," he complained.

A major force in Irish cinema Pearse enjoyed huge box office success last year with his first feature length movie, the comedy Man About Dog.It ranked eighth at the Irish box office last year ahead of some of Hollywood's top offerings. But Pearse has complained that the success wasn't mirrored in Northern Ireland. And his latest film - starring former X-Files beauty Gillian Anderson and top British actors Ken Stott and Robert Carlyle - is also playing to packed cinemas across the Republic. But that too has been slower to take off this side of the border.

Pearse squarely lays the blame with a counterfeit DVD culture for the slump. "Man About Dog went down a storm in the Republic," he said. "It was one of the biggest grossing movies of last year coming in as the number eight highest earner and that's some feat when it's up against all the American movies. But it didn't go down so well in the North - yet everyone I know has seen it!"

"There seems to be a culture of 'I'll wait for the DVD' and there's so many ways of getting your hands on one now before it even comes out in the shop. Between bootleggers whether criminal or paramilitary that's one thing but it's really easy now for people to burn a movie from their computer. Traditionally we don't have a great cinema-going audience and I think people are happy enough to sit around and wait. Many of them get it from the video shop but there's a big culture of the pirate DVD - how can anyone enjoy the experience of watching a movie with people's heads moving about at the front of the screen. It's just ludicrous and ruins the whole experience. It also hits us hard in the industry, more than people know. There are livelihoods at stake."

Pearse's latest film The Mighty Celt starring Gillian Anderson, has been well received at the box office as well as major critical acclaim. It tells the story of one Belfast boy's love of a greyhound who turns out to be a champion racer against the odds.

Now Pearse, who's back to the drawing board working on his latest project, says his next movie will be aimed at the US market. "The Observer named The Mighty Celt Film of the Week and it has been getting rave reviews but that's not being reflected at the box offices. I'm going to turn my hand now to a movie with an international feel - the US market is the way to go," he confessed.

BBC Radio 4 Transcript
Posted at 12:00 PM (PDT) on Monday, August 29, 2005

Gillian was on BBC Radio 4: Saturday, August 27 -- Arts and Drama The Film Programme.

Chris Tookey talked with her about her new film 'The Mighty Celt'.

Click here to read the transcript.

Thanks, Laura!

'I'm not good at playing the game'
Posted at 9:19 AM (PDT) on Monday, August 29, 2005

From The Observer
August 28, 2005

Gillian Anderson has made no secret of her dislike for the paparazzi, so why did she marry a journalist, asks Rachel Cooke. And why does this American love England so?

It tells you quite a lot about Gillian Anderson that she is conducting interviews to promote her latest movie in the crepuscular Bloomsbury offices of a film publicity company. Even to my weary eyes, they seem depressing, all dirty woodchip and trailing cables that lead who knows where. In the loo are damp blue towels; on the wall are laminated signs reminding employees to turn off the lights. What I want to know is: where are the coffee and croissants? Where is the giant, flat-screen TV permanently tuned to Sky? Call this a film junket? Anderson lurks in a vast room with grubby skirting boards; it has bad light, a single bulb emitting a yellow gloom of a kind that would make even Marilyn Monroe look liverish. A make-up artist is leaving and I wonder how she coped. Perhaps she keeps a miner's helmet among her brushes and powder; either that, or she made Anderson stand at the window, gazing at the driving rain.

None of this seems to bother Anderson.

Read more here or here.

New Interview and more reviews for The Mighty Celt
Posted at 11:04 AM (PDT) on Friday, August 26, 2005

This is LONDON
August 26, 2005

X-Files ex is in love with London
By Fiona Maddocks, Evening Standard

Even accepting she's just had her make-up done for our photo shoot, Gillian Anderson looks flawless. Though not normally the first thing you expect to remark on, with Anderson it's almost fair game.

Ever a reluctant interviewee, she's here to do her bit for The Mighty Celt, the film, opening today, in which she stars with Robert Carlyle, written and directed by Pearse Elliott and set in contemporary Belfast.

Anderson, unfamiliar with Northern Ireland, took her preparation seriously, driving around Belfast with her husband of eight months, ex-Financial Times foreign correspondent Julian Ozanne.

"I realised how little I knew about the complexities of the issues," she says, carefully and with no suggestion that she's now mastered them; merely that she's trying. "We visited the different sides of the Falls Road, the monuments, the graveyards, the murals. We looked at houses with nets draped over their back yards to protect them, like tiny prisons. But we looked, too, at what a beautiful city Belfast is, and how strong is its sense of community, its optimism."

To read the entire article, click here.

*************************

Lots more TMC reviews:

The Irish Times
Belfast Telegraph
Arts Telegraph
The Mirror
The Independent
The Guardian
Irish News
The Scotsman

Daily Record (excerpts)
By Alan Morrison

Scottish acting duo Robert Carlyle and Ken Stott take on Irish accents for this tale set in contemporary Belfast. Former X-Files star Gillian Anderson is also word perfect as the single mother of Donal (Tyrone McKenna), a boy who is obsessed with greyhounds. Behind the boy's story is a portrait of the adults' Northern Ireland, a country and its people trying - and sometimes failing - to change and move on from the sectarian violence of the past. t's a low-key release that doesn't really gain much from big screen projection, although strong performances and an absorbing story raise it above made-for-TV fare.

Evening Times, Glasgow (excerpts)
By Andy Dougan

THERE are a lot of good things coming out of both sides of the border in Ireland, cinematically speaking. Adam and Paul, for example, remains one of the best films I've seen this year. This is not in the same league but despite being a slight drama it is worth a look if only for the quality of a cast that includes Robert Carlyle, Gillian Anderson, and Ken Stott.

What we have here is National Velvet with greyhounds and Belfast accents. Director Pearse Elliot has a tendency to romanticise almost everything to the point where its one note of genuine discomfort - a sub-plot about Republican gunrunners - just disappears. That apart, it's the performances that make this one worth watching, along with a running time that doesn't overstay its welcome.

Gillian on GM TV and more TMC news
Posted at 10:46 AM (PDT) on Thursday, August 25, 2005



The GM TV web site has a video clip featuring Gillian: "No longer seen as Dana Scully, Gillian Anderson is moving on from the X-Files."

To read the transcript, click here.

Thank you very much to Maddy for the transcript, to Lorna for the screen caps, and to Lyze and monicafp for pointing us to the video clip!

*************************

Birmingham Post Review (excerpts)
By Mike Davies

Even knowing X-Files star Gillian Anderson was co-starring, it was still a while before I actually recognised her on screen, so on the button is her Ulster accent and so completely is she immersed in the character.

First time director Pearse Elliott keeps the political backdrop and the threat of violence on an understated simmer, preferring to concentrate on the coming-of-age drama which tends to play out rather like Kes with a greyhound.

The central performances are exemplary, Anderson first rate as the feisty working class mother (demonstrating fine comic timing in her learning to drive scenes), Carlyle never overplaying his reformed troubled terrorist and, smoking and swearing his head off, newcomer McKenna a real find as Donal.

One shockingly unexpected moment that will upset young viewers aside, the plot follows a fairly predictable course but knowing what's coming shouldn't lessen the impact or enjoyment at all.

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The Times Online
By James Christopher

The story is so slender it almost crumbles between your fingers. The romance between Anderson’s single mum and Carlyle’s newly freed prisoner is made of sterner stuff, if only because they wear their unspoken grief like Marley’s chains. The winning ingredient is how these lonely adults square their differences for the sake of the young boy.

Who would have thought that the wellbeing of a dog would inspire the first example of Peace Process cinema? All credit to the exotic cast for trampling the issues that famous locals fear to tread. The accents are impeccable. Anderson is faultless as a bitter, loving mother. Carlyle is terrific as the wise lag, hailed as a hero for an act of terror he would rather forget.

The tribal friction is spot-on. If only Elliot could have extended the same subtlety to his soapy plot. But pack your expectations lightly and you might be pleasantly surprised.

Read more.

Thanks xfrgg and Wendy!

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Film Exposed
By Chris Thornton

Pearse Elliott both writes and directs this semi-autobiographical tale and his closeness to the material is clear through well studied and developed characters and a general fondness for the Belfast setting.

Indeed this film is heart warming in its nostalgia, but in some rather surprising ways. ...The clear attention to the every day details is the core of the film’s strength whilst the film’s performances bring out the best in an already strong script. Everyone impresses; Carlyle and Stott are both wonderful, Anderson is virtually unrecognisable and puts on a decent Belfast accent that will convince most, but the real star of the show is Tyrone McKenna, a brilliant find who carries the film on his small shoulders with aplomb.

The Mighty Celt is funny, heart warming and also heart rending; it is a film for all age groups except perhaps the youngest. The story is a good one well told and well delivered; kudos to Mr. Elliott on a brilliant debut.

Read more.

Thanks Lyze and Wendy!

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Film Ireland
By Rebecca Kemp

The film essentially belongs to its actors and characterisations, with fine performances from Tyrone McKenna as Donal, Ken Stott as Joe and Robert Carlyle as O. But the shining light is Gillian Anderson, virtually unrecognisable as Belfast single mum Kate, all boobs, roll-up fags and high hair. Her short-vowelled, nasal accent is nothing short of the real thing.

Entirely shot on location, The Mighty Celt is a semi-autobiographical homage to Elliott's home town, drawing on his passion for breeding dogs and injected with his own take on post-conflict politics. It's a moving story of atonement, told through sensitive characterisation, and using paradox to underline Elliott's particular political bug-bears. However, fans of the more hardened political drama will not find the depth of conviction or gritty realism evident in films made in the midst of the conflict, from the likes of Jim Sheridan and Terry George in The Boxer or In the Name of the Father.

Read more.

Thanks xfrgg!

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Sky Movies
By Tim Evans

Pearse Elliott's solid and often touching film succeeds largely thanks to the quality of the acting (Gillian Anderson nails an Irish accent) and its non-sensational approach to issues including renegade republicans unwilling to give up the fight.

There haven't been a great number of films dealing with Northern Ireland's difficult emergence from decades of sectarian terrorism. Director Pearse Elliott doesn't actually focus on the political upheavals of the peace agreement but acknowledges there are those unwilling to forgive and forget. Instead, he's drawn to the everyday story of a young boy growing up in a Belfast still riven by ideological conflict but unquestioningly determined to keep the peace.

It gets a little bit of a canine Kes but terrific performances - particularly from the seasoned Caryle and luminous newcomer McKenna - lend it a voice of its own. Gillian Anderson - boasting a convincing Irish burr - makes the movie attractive Stateside and its level-headed approach to a complex situation deserves praise.

Worth a look.

Read more.

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The Mighty Celt screenings at the Montreal World Film Festival are :

August 29, 2005 - 09:20:00 - CINÉMA PARISIEN 6
August 30, 2005 - 21:30:00 - CINÉMA PARISIEN 6
August 31, 2005 - 19:00:00 - CINÉMA PARISIEN 5
September 04, 2005 - 11:40:00 - CINÉMA PARISIEN 2

Thanks Martin!

TMC Director talks about the film plus an update on Celt the greyhound
Posted at 9:10 AM (PDT) on Wednesday, August 24, 2005

From BBC UK MOVIES:

WATCH: Director Pearse Elliott talks about shooting dogs, working with newcomer Tyrone McKenna, and casting Gillian Anderson and Robert Carlyle.

They also have the trailer.

From the Sunday Express:

Why Dumped Dog is Such a Lucky Hound
By David Wigg

No one wanted greyhound Pal after he was abandoned for not being fast enough on the track - until an animal trainer was asked to find a dog to star in a film. David Wigg tells how the renamed Celt so nearly lost out again - before finding a new home and some much-needed love.

Read more.

Lots More on The Mighty Celt
Posted at 10:19 AM (PDT) on Tuesday, August 23, 2005

From Film 247.net:

The cast are remarkable; Stott gives all little boys nightmares with his performance of the amusingly nicknamed Good Joe. Anderson proves once again that her acting talents are far beyond her famous TV role. Carlyle is wonderful, but is overshadowed by the young McKenna who seems to have taken to acting like a duck to water (or perhaps greyhound to racetrack?) and steals the film. ...the film is very touching and during the racing scenes, I couldn’t help but exclaim "Go Mighty Celt! Go!"


Read more.

Thanks xfrgg and Wendy!

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From the Zreview.co.uk:

Extremely strong performances from the entire cast bring this to life. McKenna is terrific as Donal--edgy and tenacious, someone we like and want to cheer for. Nothing quite prepares us for Anderson's feisty turn as a skinny, working-class Irish mum. And Carlyle is perfectly cast as the charming man with a mysterious past. Stott has the thankless role as the guy who becomes darkly jealous and then vicious for no obvious reason. This cliche undermines the film somewhat, as does the structure of the race sequences (do we have any doubt what will happen?). And the frightening violence will be a bit much for young viewers. But it's a strong, engaging film that's well worth a look.

Read more.

Thanks Lyze and Wendy!

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Yahoo! Movies UK & Ireland also has the trailer plus two new film clips of The Mighty Celt.

Click here OR go to Yahoo! Movies and scroll down to Movie Features: The Mighty Celt.

Thanks Vaughan!

More trailers at: My Movies.net.

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From MSN.co.uk TV Listings:

All this week, ITV 3 will have repeat airings of Film File: Review of director Pearse Elliot's new drama The Mighty Celt, which stars Robert Carlyle, Gillian Anderson and newcomer Tyrone McKenna

For more information, click here.

Thanks, Laura!

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MONTREAL WORLD FILM FESTIVAL 2005: August 26 - September 5

The goal of the Montreal World Film Festival (Montreal International Film Festival) is to encourage cultural diversity and understanding between nations, to foster the cinema of all continents by stimulating the development of quality cinema, to promote filmmakers and innovative works, to discover and encourage new talents, and to promote meetings between cinema professionals from around the world.

Focus on World Cinema Section:

THE MIGHTY CELT
Ireland / 2004 / 35 mm / Colour / 80 min / Dir.: Pearse Elliot
A young man living with his mother enters the underground world of dog racing, with the encouragement of a local dog trainer.

Thanks monicafp!