We all know us Irish are renowned for many things around the world, and St Patrick’s Day weekend is the perfect time to celebrate that.
If you’d rather stay away from the outdoor festivities, rugby fever or the bars that will be inevitably jammed, here’s our picks for the best Irish films on Netflix right now.
Enjoy!
The Hardy Bucks Movie
Party-loving Irelanders plan a road trip to Poland to take in some soccer and sights. But their journey veers way off course when they hit Amsterdam.
Cardboard Gangsters
Cardboard Gangsters follows the story of a group of young lads in Darndale, led by Jay Connolly (John Connors), who sell drugs to make a living. They set out in a bid to gain more money and power and enter the big leagues of the drug trade.
Sing Street
In 1980s Dublin, a teen whose family is falling apart transfers to a tough school, where he forms a rock band to fit in and win a girl’s attention. Stars Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, Lucy Boynton and Jack Reynor
The Young Offenders
Never ones to think things through, two Irish teens steal bicycles and set off to the coast to find a bale of cocaine from a smugglers capsized ship.
Handsome Devil
A self-described outsider is sent to a rugby-obsessed boarding school, where is forms an unexpected bond with the star player. Stars Fionn O’Shea, Nicolas Galitzine, Andrew Scott and Moe Dunford.
The Siege of Jadotville
Winner of four IFTAs, The Siege of Jadotville tells the true story of Irish Soldiers who were besieged by overwhelming enemy forces while on a UN peacekeeping mission in the Congo. The heroes led by Commandant Pat Quinlan fought for five days and heroically defended their outpost. A Netflix Original film, based on the book Siege at Jadotville : The Irish Army’s Forgotten Battle by Declan Power. Stars Jamie Dornan, Jason O’Mara, Mark Strong, Sam Keeley and Fionn O’Shea.
In Bruges
After a particularly difficult job, hit men Ray (Colin Farrell) and Ken (Brendan Gleeson) head to Belgium to hide out until things cool down. Ray hates the medieval city they land in, but Ken finds its beauty and peacefulness enchanting. Their experiences become increasingly surreal and possibly life-changing as they encounter tourists, locals, an American dwarf and a potential romance for Ray.
Bad Day For The Cut
A mild-mannered , middle-aged Irish farmer embarks on a bloody quest to avenge his mother’s murder. He soon discovers her dark past while wading through the criminal underworld of Belfast.
The Secret Scripture
An Irish film directed by Jim Sheridan, from a screenplay by Sheridan and Johnny Ferguson, which is based on the 2008 novel of the same name. A psychiatrist examines Roseanne McNulty, an elderly Irish woman living in a mental institution, and learns more about her past in the process. Rooney Mara plays McNulty as a young woman, in flashbacks that detail her love triangle with a fighter pilot and a priest.
The Boys and Girls From County Clare
John Joe and his traditional Celtic folk band are ready to defend their championship at County Clare’s annual All-Ireland Traditional Music Competition when his prodigal brother, Jimmy, returns home from Liverpool with his new band. The sibling rivalry is further complicated by embittered piano player Maisie, the mother of Jimmy’s abandoned child, and the burgeoning romance between rival band members, Anne and Teddy.
Hunger
Focusing on the 1981 hunger strikes by Republican prisoners in Northern Ireland. Bobby Sands is one of a group of prisoners who first “took to the blanket” with a “dirty protest” in pursuit of their claims for recognition as political prisoners. Sands then became the first one of the group to embark on a hunger strike that was to end in his death.
The Magdalene Sisters
In 1964, three teenage Irish girls are sent to a Magdalene asylum, an archaic home for “fallen women,” though their crimes aren’t criminal. Rose is pregnant out of wedlock, Bernadette has been caught flirting with a boy at school, and Margaret is sentenced for having been raped by a family member. There, the girls perform hard labour supervised by cruel nuns, led by the sneering Sister Bridget – and dream of escape.
Calvary
An honest and good-hearted priest (Brendan Gleeson) wrestles with a cynical, spiteful community after he receives a death threat from an unknown parishioner.
Evelyn
When the mother of young Evelyn Doyle (Sophie Vavasseur) abandons her family, her devastated father Desmond (Pierce Brosnan), is left to care for Evelyn and her brothers on his own. Because Irish laws forbid children to be raised in a home without two parents, Evelyn and her brothers are removed from Desmond’s care and sent to separate orphanages. Desmond, who is out of work and abusing alcohol, will have to challenge the Irish courts to bring his children home.
Standby
A luckless tourist aid at Dublin airport reconnects with this love of eight years earlier, who is on standby for a flight back to the US. Stars Jessica Pare, Brian Gleeson and Stanley Townsend.
Gold
A man returns home after a 10 year absence to reconnect with his ex-wife and daughter, but finds them living with his domineering former PE teacher.
Stars James Nesbitt, Kerry Condon, Patrick Gibson and Maisie Williams
Ondine
A fisherman’s (Colin Farrell) life is transformed when he catches a mysterious woman in his nets. His daughter come to believe that the woman is magical creature.
Hostage to the Devil
Follow the eerie story of Father Malachi Martin, a disenchanted priest whose belief in demonic possession would lead him to conduct several exorcisms