The Brylcreem Boys (1996)

Admirable film.

The acting in this movie is really good.

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

It is an enjoyable movie based loosely on real life events at the World War 2 era internment camp in Ireland where combatants from both Allied and Axis forces who wound up on Irish soil were placed in, as long as you don't think too much about the obvious. It is rather shallow and stereotyped on the whole, although it is quite well done in certain aspects. The extreme history buffs, those who know the actual background of Irish neutrality and Eire's relations with both Britain and Germany at this time extremely well, could nitpick over some of the history as depicted in the film, but on the whole, the movie does get most of the history fairly accurately. There is plenty of good material that could have been developed better here, besides the (mostly) accurate historical background. There is genuine dramatic tension among so many of the characters: the complex love-hate relationship between the Irish and the British (e.g. the camp commandant was a guest of the camp himself when it was a British prison camp for Irish political prisoners or how the family members of many Irish families around the camp are serving in the British Army), the unease among the prisoners about being in an easy-going internment while their friends and families are in a war where they are being killed or maimed (the German sailor who commits suicide over his family being killed in an air raid and the excessive brutality and super-nationalistic attitude of some German officers, for example), and of course, the whole premise about enemies in war having to be civil towards each other in a neutral country under unwilling circumstances, etc. None of these themes really gets developed clearly, in part because all of these are just mentioned too quickly and are left behind without being really developed, and also, to a large degree because most of the actors are, for the most part, rather wooden and their dialogue a bit too clichéd (Campbell, playing Miles Keough, is especially guilty of this as is Jean Butler, but at least, for the latter, it is her acting debut in a feature film, as far as I know. Byrne, with his character's interesting background as a former political prisoner turned camp commandant, could have played more of a role, but he is almost entirely a background character.) Given how underdeveloped and scatterbrained the overall film seems, the end narration seems like an evasive cop-out. It is annoying also that the writers seem completely undecided on whether Keogh is an actual Canadian or an American serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force, as he is referred to as both at different times in the film. (Historically, there was only one American in the camp, who did escape, and was sent back by the British authorities, as per what happens to the indisputably American RAF pilot in the film. Most Allied personnel at the camp did leave the camp before the war was over, as the Irish government repatriated most, if not all, Allied internees some time in 1943 (but it is at least a year after the film's end) although the Germans had to stay on until the war ended.)

The Brylcreem boys is a terrific film and is a must see for all history buffs. The events in the story are all true and give us a feel of what life was like during war-time Ireland. As an Irish person I related to the anti-war theme. This is a film that can be seen again and again,a nd enjoyed by all age groups. I highly recommend it. Ayn Madigan. London-Dublin

I've had a chance to see this film and i think that for a war time story its actually quite good. It has a good story and is very easy to follow. The gorgeous Jean Butler Play's her part wonderfully. If you've got a couple of hours free i recommend it.

ROYAL AIR FORCES ASSOCIATION CANNOCK CHASE BRANCH U.K.(573) Members of the Cannock Chase Branch of the R.A.F. - Royal Air Force - attended the premier of the excellent film "The Brylcreem Boys" held on April 23, 1999 in Wolverhampton. All of us were ex-serving members of the R.A.F., and some of our group were elderly veterans who had flown in the 'Battle of Britain' in 1941. We all wish to express our thanks to the director Terence Ryan and all the cast and crew who's efforts made this film possible. Without a doubt we all feel that this film has captured the essence of the situation that prevailed during the period in which the film was set. The comradeship and humour that made up life in the R.A.F. is a thing that can never be adequately described but we all feel that the film The Brylcreem Boys has gone a long way in portraying this. We congratulate everyone involved in the making of this film for what can only be described as an excellent piece of work. Sincerely Malcolm Blackman. R.A.F.