Saint Patricks Day

The Irish Rovers perform at Belfast's Waterfront Hall. The program also includes a showcase of Ireland's northwest coast and interviews with Rovers Wilcil McDowell and George Millar. ~ Jeff Gemmill, Rovi

Two pairs of newlyweds find their wedding day thrown for a loop upon discovering that the reception hall has mistakenly been double-booked in this romantic comedy starring Sally Hawkins and Tom Riley. To further complicate matters, the bride who just married for convenience (Hawkins) begins to fall for the groom (Riley) who was tying the knot with his impetuous ex-wife for the second time. But is there really any hope for these two smitten strangers, or are they both destined to live out their days in quiet desperation? ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A '40s-era fighter pilot accepts a drunken bet to shoot down at least five enemy aircraft as he heads off to war, subsequently realizing that there's more on the line than he initially thought. New Year's Eve, 1944: Lieutenant Mike Clark (Andrew Keegan) will be shipping out to Europe soon, but for now he's drinking the night away in grand fashion. Striking up a conversation with a mysterious stranger named Vito (Karl Shiels), Mike accepts a 10,000-dollar wager to become a certified war ace. The catch? Vito isn't just your average benevolent patriot, but the nephew of notorious Chicago gangster Al Capone. Now, in order to avoid the wrath of public enemy number one, Lieutenant Clark takes to the skies with guns blazing. But just as Lieutenant Clark prepares to shoot down his fifth German plane, he's forced to make an emergency landing in Ireland. Will Lieutenant Clark find a way to repair his plane and make good on his wager, or has he already flown his final sortie? ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

A grieving widow finds her husband's warmth radiating from the afterlife when she discovers that he left her a series of tasks to be revealed in ten monthly messages and designed to help her overcome her sorrow while gradually making the transition into a new life. Holly Kennedy (Hilary Swank) is a New York real estate broker whose good-humored husband, Irishman Gerry (Gerard Butler), always stood by her side. Suddenly, and seemingly out of nowhere, Gerry succumbs to a brain tumor and Holly is left to face an uncertain future. No one in the world knows Holly better than Gerry, not even her mother (Kathy Bates) or her best friends, Sharon (Gina Gershon) and Denise (Lisa Kudrow). But while Holly remains unsure if she can go on without the love of her life to help guide her, Gerry has planned ahead. On Holly's 30th birthday, she receives a cake and a special tape recording from Gerry that implores her to get out and celebrate instead of staying in and mourning. Later, as the months wear on, a series of additional messages arrive from Gerry -- always delivered in the most remarkable and surprising of ways. With each new message comes a new adventure, and each letter signs off in the same familiar way: "P.S. I love you." Despite the fact that Holly's mother and friends think these humorous, posthumous messages are keeping Holly bound to the past, the truth is that they are lovingly guiding her into the future while proving that sometimes death isn't just the end, but a new beginning as well. Director Richard LaGravenese teams with screenwriter Steve Rogers to adapt author Cecelia Ahern's best-selling novel. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

This one hour program compiles some of the best music from Irish recording artist Phil Coulter, whose ambient take on traditional Irish music has been relaxing fans for years. Each musical selection is set against imagery of some of Ireland's most beautiful natural landscapes such as the Cliffs of Homher in County Clare. ~ Cammila Collar, Rovi

Two brothers are caught on differing sides of the battle for Irish freedom in this politically minded historical drama from veteran British filmmaker Ken Loach. It's 1920, and Damien O'Donovan (Cillian Murphy) has recently graduated from medical school. Damien plans to leave the small village in Ireland where he was born to take a job in London, much to the annoyance of his brother Teddy (Padraic Delaney), who is an Irish loyalist and wants to see the British stripped of their rule of his land. While visiting Peggy (Mary Riordan), a longtime friend of the family, Damien and Teddy witness a visit by "Black and Tans," British soldiers who supposedly keep the peace in Ireland; the soldiers turn violent and murder Michaeil (Lawrence Barry), Peggy's grandson, when they discover he only speaks Gaelic. Damien is radicalized by the event, and with Teddy joins the local chapter of the Irish Republican Army, who use violence to drive British troops out of the country. While the IRA is a poor and ill-equipped fighting force, their willingness to give their lives for their cause is taken very seriously by the British, who step up their reprisals against the locals; the Black and Tans even begin directing their violence and torture against women and children, including Damien's girlfriend, Sinead (Orla Fitzgerald). In 1921, Britain attempts to end the violence in Ireland by creating the Irish Free State, a compromise government which will give the Irish greater autonomy while Great Britain still retains final political control of the nation. Teddy sees this as a victory and believes it's an important first step to a truly free Ireland, but Damien sees the IRA's goal as nothing short of complete independence, and the brothers and allies soon become rivals in a battle neither side can win. The Wind That Shakes the Barley received the Golden Palm award as Best Picture at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

First-time Irish writer/director Sean Walsh spent ten years making Bl,.m (Bloom), an adaptation of James Joyce's infamously difficult 1922 epic Ulysses. Set in Dublin on the day of June 16, 1904, the film attempts to make a visual reconstruction of Joyce's stream-of-consciousness style. Following all the major themes of the original novel, it's bookended by the internal monologue given by the sexually driven Molly (Angeline Ball). Stephen Rea plays her husband, the introspective Jewish-Irishman Leopold Bloom. Hugh O'Conor plays the philosophical young writer Stephen Dedalus. Bloom premiered at the 2003 Taormina Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi

In the suburbs of Dublin, more than a dozen strangers find their paths colliding in sometimes violent, sometimes absurd ways in Intermission, the first feature from director John Crowley. Setting the chain of events in motion is Lehiff (Colin Farrell), a small-time crook whose most recent petty theft has him on the run from Jerry (Colm Meaney), a self-aggrandizing police detective who's even more full of himself now that he's being constantly trailed by a TV news documentary crew. Meanwhile, Lehiff's friend John (Cillian Murphy) is going though a trial breakup -- or "intermission," as he calls it -- with his girlfriend, Deirdre (Kelly Macdonald), who has promptly taken up with the older, more conventionally responsible bank manager Sam (Michael McElhatton). When Lehiff suggests that the answer to all of his and John's troubles is to set up Sam and rob his vaults, John's too eager to comply -- and their plan spells dire consequences for everyone in their immediate circle of relations. Also starring David Wilmot, Brian F. O'Byrne, and Shirley Henderson, Intermission had its premiere at the Galway Film Festival, where it won the Audience Award, and secured berths at the Edinburgh, Telluride, and Toronto festivals. ~ Michael Hastings, Rovi

One man takes on the Irish family law system and the Catholic Church in a bid to be reunited with his children in this drama, based on a true story. In 1953, Desmond Doyle (Pierce Brosnan) was a house painter and decorator who, despite a strong work ethic, had a hard time holding on to steady work. Desmond's wife had grown tired of her marriage and her husband's financial problems, and one day walked away from her home, leaving Desmond to raise their three children on his own. While Desmond struggles to keep body and soul together for his children, his sporadic employment eventually attracts the attention of the law, and a court order sends his two sons and young daughter to separate Catholic orphanages until Desmond can prove he's capable of properly supporting them. However, Desmond discovers merely getting work is not enough to bring his children back to him, and when he learns that his daughter, Evelyn (Sophie Vavasseur), is having a rough time of it at the hands of several stern nuns, he becomes determined to win their custody in a court of law. Through Bernadette (Julianna Margulies), a barmaid who has caught his eye, Desmond meets Michael Beattie (Stephen Rea), a lawyer and Bernadette's brother. While Michael doesn't believe Desmond's case can be won in an Irish court, his partner Nick Barron (Aidan Quinn), an expatriate American who lost custody of his own children in a divorce proceeding, is eager to help, and they agree to take the case. However, they both realize they're fighting an uphill battle, and so they persuade Thomas Connolly (Alan Bates), a former football star who became one of Ireland's most respected barristers, to lend his knowledge and prestige to the case. Leading man Bronson also served a co-producer for Evelyn; Bruce Beresford directed, who previously collaborated with Pierce Brosnan on Mister Johnson. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Everyone's favorite bloodthirsty Irish gnome invades the world of hip-hop in the fifth film in the Leprechaun series. Stray Bullet, Butch, and Postmaster P are three young rappers trying to raise money for their first record. They break into the studio of powerful producer Mack Daddy (Ice-T), hoping to steal something salable or do some recording. Instead, they discover the secret behind Mack Daddy's multi-platinum success: a magic flute. The rappers take the flute with them, and their careers take a dramatic upswing; but Mack Daddy wants the flute back, and he has reinforcements: the Leprechaun (Warwick Davis), who has an agreement with Mack Daddy and isn't happy when people cross him. Leprechaun in the Hood was directed by Brian Trenchard-Smith, who also directed the third and fourth Leprechaun films. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

This film covers St. Patrick's early life and the 30 years he later spent preaching the Gospel throughout Ireland. Actors Alan Bates, Malcolm McDowell, Susannah York, and Patrick Bergin breathe life into this remarkable man's story. Viewers will learn how St. Patrick left behind his early pagan beliefs and began embracing God's teachings while he was held captive during his youth. Before his death, St. Patrick established a number of new monasteries, churches, and schools. This entire film was shot on location in Ireland. ~ Elizabeth Smith, Rovi

Just as the charming British film The Full Monty told the story of simple men willing to shed their clothes for money, Waking Ned Devine is the story of older Irish men who pursue money and take off their clothes. Commercial director Kirk Jones makes his feature directing debut with a story about a small town in Ireland called Tulaigh More, where one of their 52 inhabitants wins the lotto jackpot of nearly seven million pounds. When nobody claims it, the town goes on a search to find out why. They find the winner, old Ned Devine, dead -- a smile on his face, clutching the winning ticket. Well, in Ireland, the lottery winnings must be claimed by the purchaser, which puts the town in a spot -- if the lottery officials discover Devine dead, he forfeits his money. What ensues is a community coming together in hopes of getting his money to split 51 ways. What they learn is the importance of friendship and the true value of money. To reveal any more would spoil some major surprises, but suffice it to say, it involves aging actors David Kelly, 69, and Ian Bannen, 70, naked. ~ Chris Gore, Rovi

Neil Jordan directed this adaptation of Patrick McCabe's novel about a boy's struggles with violence and mental illness. Francie Brady (Eamonn Owens) is a young boy growing up in Dublin in the early 1960s, where his life is dominated by his active imagination and his best friend Joe (Alan Boyle). But beneath this benign surface lurks a troubled soul; his father (Stephen Rea) is an embittered alcoholic, his mother (Aisling O'Sullivan) is emotionally unstable and periodically ends up in the local mental hospital (or as she calls it, "the garage," because it's where they take you when you break down), and their next-door neighbor, Mrs. Nugent (Fiona Shaw) often rants that the Bradys are "pigs" not fit to live with. For all their troubles, Francie fiercely loves his parents, and he can't abide Mrs. Nugent's insults. But his playful childhood pranks begin to advance into more destructive and menacing behavior, which leads him to his own stay in "the garage." Branded a lunatic by the community and shorn of his only close friendship when Joe takes up with Mrs. Nugent's son, Francie soon reaches the point of collapse. With nowhere to go, Francie takes an especially awful job as a butcher's assistant, and his overactive imagination goes into overdrive, flooding his mind with images of alien takeover, atomic apocalypse, and the Virgin Mary (Sinead O'Connor) that lead him further down the path toward shocking acts of violence. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi