Watching the film adaptation of Frank McCourt's memoir of Irish misery is an emotionally draining experience.
From its opening images of Brooklyn's run-down and disease-ridden tenements, it is apparent that "Angela's Ashes" will not be a particularly enjoyable movie. Against a background of chaotic bleakness, we are introduced to a young Frankie McCourt, mischievously splashing water on his two naked brothers. Only minutes later, however, the boys' horseplay is interrupted by the screams of their mother, Angela (Emily Watson), who has just lost her baby daughter.
Unlike most impoverished Irish families, the McCourts, disillusioned by their prospects in America, head back to Ireland, where similarly uninviting conditions prevail. One of the film's most realistic elements is its portrayal of everyday discomfort, which causes viewers to empathize with the McCourts. Something as simple as using the bathroom becomes difficult, as one of the McCourt sons is seen relieving himself in the Cork train station. In later scenes, the theme of excrement and filth continues as the family is forced to adapt to their disgusting and dehumanizing environment.
The necessities of life are equally unattainable in the dreary city of Limerick, where starvation and the damp, cold weather take their toll. At one point, the entire family must sleep on one flea-infested mattress, and malnourishment eventually leads to the deaths of two more sons, Oliver and Eugene. Clothing is ragged at best, and in one perversely humorous scene, the uneven rubber soles of Frankie and his brother Malachy's shoes provide a comparatively light moment.
Watching Frank and family experience such great losses in rapid succession, however, spawns a certain detachment on the part of the viewer. Within the first half-hour of the movie, three children die, making it difficult to invest too much emotion in any one character.
The lead performances, though, create lasting effects. Malachy Sr. (Robert Carlyle), a native of Belfast and a Protestant to boot, is the main source of conflict for the already struggling family. Carlyle, best known for his portrayal of the violence-addicted Begbie in "Trainspotting," demonstrates his versatility as the alcoholic Limerick misfit. Blamed by his in-laws for his children's half-Protestant impurity, Malachy faces discrimination on all fronts. Unable to get a job in the anti-Northern Ireland city, he becomes apathetic toward his family's suffering and leads the McCourts into further despair with his consistent drunkenness.
Carlyle is believable in his multifaceted role: We are able to sympathize with his circumstances as an easy target for embittered Limerickmen looking for someone to blame. But he's also easy to hate, as he holds the responsibility for drinking his children to near-starvation.
Emily Watson ("Hilary and Jackie") couldn't be more convincing as the deteriorating title character, Angela. A symbol of self-sacrifice and dehumanization, Angela is forced to beg and prostitute herself to feed her children. Deserted by her husband and later by her eldest son Frankie, Angela describes her life in Limerick as a living hell. Yet she experiences a kind of release in that her emotional and physical withering create the metaphorical ashes described in the title.
The story conveys the idea of spiritual death paralleled by actual death, which is portrayed more devastatingly in the end. Director Alan Parker's visuals contribute to the theme of emotional waste, shrouding the surroundings with constant, rainy dreariness. Gray is pervasive as it envelops the city of Limerick, coloring the sky, buildings and the many cadavers in the film.
The retelling of Frank's coming of age is, for the most part, believable and emotionally effective; however, the trite final scene, in which he gazes up at the Statue of Liberty, detracts from the power of the film.
"Angela's Ashes" is not a fun movie. It is about as somber and emotionally overwhelming as they come. It does, however, deserve attention for giving a face and name to the too-often-forgotten immigrant.
Grade: B+
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