It’s easy to loathe the villains of director Ken Loach’s new drama, Jimmy’s Hall, set in rural Ireland at the nadir of the Great Depression. After all, the hero of this tale is the gregarious Jimmy Gralton (Barry Ward), who re-opens his renowned country meeting hall after a decade-long exile in America. At the hall, local young people gather to dance to traditional Irish tunes and the new Yankee music called “jazz,” while the adults teach free classes in everything from painting to boxing to literature. Who could be opposed to such community spirit? The Catholic Church for one: The parish priest (Jim Norton) rails against licentious rhythms from “darkest Africa” and plainly abhors any popular institution not under the Church’s control. Relatedly, the wealthy landowners and their allies in the Irish Free State police are convinced that the hall is a breeding ground for socialist inculcation and lingering Irish Civil War resentments.
With such imperious reactionaries as antagonists, the screenplay by regular Loach collaborator Paul Laverty doesn’t have to work especially hard to portray Jimmy’s hall as a righteous, liberated refuge from Church and state oppression. Consequently, the films spends its energy elsewhere, such as on the star-crossed love between Jimmy and former flame Oonagh (Simone Kirby), which is appropriately tender, but not that remarkable. The primary allure of Jimmy’s Hall lies in its vibrant evocation of a particular time and place where traditionalism and authoritarianism were in stark, grassroots conflict with modernity in all its forms. One of the pleasures of the film is observing Jimmy’s political calculations evolve as he is confronted with heartfelt arguments and brutal crackdowns. The film ultimately thrives on its portrayal of the tensions between idealism and realism that bubble through all revolutionary movements, no matter how humble.
Jimmy's Hall opens Friday, August 21 at Plaza Frontenac Cinema, 1701 S Lindbergh, 314-994-3733.
