The Rising of the Moon

Rising of the Moon, The (1957)

** (out of 4)

Anthology film has director Ford returning to Ireland but the end results are far from those of THE QUIET MAN. In the first story, "The Majesty of the Law" has a policeman going to visit an old friend, now living desperately poor due to something in his past but it turns out he does have the money to correct his wrongdoings but refuses. The second story "One Minute's Wait" is about a train that stops off in a small station but every time it tries to leave something else comes up preventing it from doing so. The final film, "1921", is about an American nun who helps a British man escape from be hung but this just leads to more problems. This here is one of the least known works by Ford and it's easy to see why as we really don't have any well-known actors in the three stories. We do have Tyrone Power showing up for brief intros to each story but this here certainly wasn't enough to bring people to the film. This is one of those movies that I just watched without ever getting fully entertained but at the same time I was never really bored. The film, on a technical level, is quite good as you can tell in each scene that Ford has a love for the subject matter. Each scene is beautifully filmed and the cinematography certainly picks up the beauty of the land. The film also works in terms of the performances. The cast are mainly unknown actors but they do very good work and they come across as real characters. Anytime you tell "short stories" within one film then you're already fighting an uphill battle as it's hard to create one equally flowing film. It seems reviews are really mixed on which is the best story but my vote would go to the final one. In his introduction Power says it comes from a story that "all Americans would know" but I doubt that's the case. The story is a mild crime drama but it contains some interesting set-ups even if it does end out of no where. In the end, this isn't a disaster or a good film but it's a minor work that will probably appeal to those with a major love of Irish stories.

These three films owe their success to an ensemble cast of Irish actors most of whom cropped up again and again whenever Ireland used to be depicted in theatre, film or television.

Representing an early style of theatre acting that needed to be clearly heard at the back of the auditorium without microphones, Noel Purcell in "The Majesty of the Law" gives the tone to most of the acting in these three films by beautifully blasting the other actors with an outsized performance. Cyril Cusack offers a rare subtlety. In "A Minute's Wait" watch dozens of actors flowing back and forth on a platform in rural Ireland as the principals share performances in true ensemble fashion.

The first two films are glorious comedies with only the faintest kernel of truth. But, no matter, by suspending disbelief, you can settle down and let the blarney flow over you.

The third film "1921" which starts with a potential execution, a strange addition to the other light stories, nevertheless manages to haul in the blarney yet again in order to lighten the tone. And no one expects even this one to end badly. There is a final song even.

All three films contain plenty of comic dialogue and, best of all, are shot on location and, despite being in black and white, we get to see much of a real Ireland - even if it's mostly in the background.

.A movie made of sketches.which is pretty rare in the English/Irish films,except for the horror flicks ,and in Ford's filmography;French (Duvivier) and Italians (Risi) are more familiar to that kind of stuff.

Ford's film has one great quality:his shorts become better and better.

I must confess I found the first segment pretty boring:unlike the two others ,it does not have an "universal" appeal .It is very talky and only the splendid Irish landscapes (it was filmed on location,Tyrone Power told us so in his presentation of the film)redeem it a little.

Things go much better with the second segment:one minute's wait in a tiny railway station which actually will last a very looong time.Several miniplots intermix (a mature couple going to a wedding ,a ghost story ,marriageable son and daughter ,a hockey team whose bus has broken down,a she-goat,lobsters ,and more ) and the very last picture is worthy of a Tex Avery cartoon. "The quiet man" in miniature.

Ford saved the best for the last:mainly during the first half ,he has a very fine way to blend tragedy (an Irish rebel will be hanged by the English ) and comedy (those nuns are wearing high heels!).A positive "remake" of "the informer" this segment is witty,sometimes hilarious,and even suspenseful.It ends of course with the traditional song "rising of the moon" a policeman used to sing although he found it a bit subversive.

This movie is to Ford what the album "Irish Heartbeat " is to singer Van Morrison :a work of love for his homeland.

"The Rising of the Moon" is a very obscure Ford movie, the kind of picture Ford would say merely "a job of work". In other words, it is not to be taken seriously. I watched it the other night, wondering to find out why it is so overlooked among Ford's pictures. It is basically a disjointed, yet reflective poem on Ireland in a by-gone era that works if you are a hardcore Ford fanatic. It is based on three vignettes that are introduced by Tyrone Power. They are called "A minutes Wait", "The Majesty of the Law", and "Rising of the Moon" also known as "1921". It is not a great movie and certainly nowhere near the kind of movie it often evokes, the beautiful "The Quiet Man", but there are some nice and enjoyable moments, particularly in the vignette about the train that makes a stop for two hours instead of one minute.

This is only the hardcore Ford fans.

1. `The Majesty of the Law' - Frank O'Connor & Frank S. Nugent.

This is the story of a proud Irish small-holder and his 'encounter' with the Law. It humorously portrays rural Irish people, the nature of village relationships, small-town disagreements, the people's attitude to the law and the officials' accommodation of those ways. Noel Purcell, as the small-farmer, and the other village people over-act in a typically stage-irish manner. ( `Is it yourself?' - `It is, to be sure.' and many, many other oirish lines that have become classics.) Cyril Cusack gives a much more subtle performance (one of his few!).

2. `A Minute's Wait' - Michael J. McHugh. Another funny story of rural Ireland has the Ballyscran to Dunfaill train at the station for its scheduled one minute stop. As the title suggests the story looks at the Irish attitude to time-keeping, and how in rural Ireland time could wait for man, . for prize goats, for Bishop's dinners, and most importantly, for a pint of porter (just the one, of course). A rare chance to see the great Jimmy O'Dea again - `Merciful hour!'

3. `1921' - Adapted from The Rising of the Moon by Lady Augusta Gregory. This is the more serious story of a young patriot who is to be hanged by the `Black and Tans' (a vicious paramilitary force which terrorised Ireland during the last years of British control). The story does show, and is true to, the different attitudes of the various factions at the time. The vicious Black and Tans, the more considerate British military, the double standards of the RIC Royal Irish Constables and collaborators, and the belligerence of the oppressed Irish people. While the acting is much more subtle than the previous short films, `1921' is let down by being poorly written and adapted. There are some great shots of 1950s Dublin, including the Liffy bridges and the Four Courts.