Say Nothing

This series asks the difficult question, if the State discriminates against you, and you use non violence to seek justice. But are met with violence, is the use of counter violence justified. The fact that the story allows us to see the view point of all players adds to the depth of this issue. Traces the evolution of the recent conflict in Northern Ireland through the the lives of two sisters. Fast moving and beautifully filmed and directed. Powerful acting by both male and female leads, especially the two sisters. High degree of realism. You feel you are there witnessing events, rather than just watching. This series is a must see for anyone with an interest in the 30 year conflict in Northern Ireland.

As someone from the north, it's very surreal to see such a high quality TV series about this period. The series clearly attempts to provide balance when looking at this period. Obviously the main focus towards the end is the disappeared, particularly Jean McConville and a few ex IRA volunteers, but it does an excellent job in portraying the motivations and circumstances of those who got involved with the IRA. The characters on all sides are developed and acted brilliantly, particularly Dolours Price and Brendan Hughes, and the odd bout of humour is very welcome and lands well. Overall this is a sometimes exhilarating but also thought provoking watch, I certainly felt it was worth taking a day out to watch!

I highly suggest reading the book for additional context/info, but the series does a fantastic job covering the material.

Really well-acted across the multiple age eras of the principal characters.

The larger themes to me are: -in war, everyone thinks they are on the right side -how far will you go for a cause you believe in, and what happens when that belief is tested or wanes -the sacrificial pawns of war who carry the most risk typically are easily discarded in the end -the larger "code" of silence within communities goes too far sometimes -the spoils of war tend to go to the bureaucrats, not the soldiers

Overall an incredibly well-done miniseries.

Historical accuracy: 9

Acting: 9 Dialogue: 9 Camera work: 8 Editing: 8 Budget: 9 Story: 8 Theme: 9 Pure entertainment factor: 8 Video quality: 8 Special effects: 7 Pacing: 8 Suspension of disbelief: 9 Non-cringe factor: 6 Lack of flashbacks: 5

I read the book and watched the new documentary on The Troubles. I think this TV show is basically as good as you can make it today far surpassing all other media. I was afraid it would be a typical British low budget historical TV series with very few small sets and comedic acting. But this is on par with big American productions as it is one. Mainly what needs to work is the history and setting and it does. When you follow a terrorist group you can't really make them look fully inhumane and cruel as that would be boring to watch. On the other hand you can't sympathize with a group whose main purpose is to kill and harm people to achieve a goal so vague they can't even define it themselves 50 years later. It's hard to make a TV series about such a group as you need to explain what they are doing and why and then also show the bad sides without making viewers turn away in disgust. We need the flair and charisma to feel engaged, but in real life there was little to none of it.

The TV series starts out with a few seconds long intro about Northern Ireland and that's that really. We get no more background info. Unless you know about the voting rights you will not be able to understand what they mean when they mention it. Households voted not people. So the big Catholic households where the pope forbids them to use condoms would have more people per household. This made them feel marginalized. But the bigger households also meant they had less money for day to day stuff so they were poorer too and felt the system was unfair. We hear the English people mock the Catholics after the terrorist attacks like when the terrorist sisters went to prison. Their statements are based on hate at that point, but this is what the TV show uses to show us a tiny bit more without offending anyone who doesn't already understand this history. These offensive statements are actually used to convey history the TV show doesn't dare go into.

What is shown in the book and documentary is just how low-brow the IRA members were. You can't really show a sheer lack of elegance and glory in a movie. They have to be younger, more attractive, more heroic, and have more exciting lives and indeed the initial episodes are flashy heists and young people flirting. Later on the show becomes more grounded. The book goes over how they decorated their cells with their excrement in protest and how dirt poor some of these IRA followers were. The apartment complex was so rundown that when an apartment got available inhabitants came by to demolish everything inside so that no one could move in forcing the government to finally tear it down. In the TV show the poverty is seen a bit in edges. The various bars they visit don't show poverty but rather affluence as they get to relax and have fun in every second scene and never hold a real job. I guess the indoor sets were too clean, but that's just TV for you. I get why some viewers who experienced the deaths from IRA may not love this show. But at the end the last few episodes do show us how it was not all glory and I think this is a show for everyone. For me it's one of the best TV series ever. It's that high quality.

It's not often that I write a review but this series it's extremely well done and moving.

It narrates real events that took place in northern Ireland between 1971 to recent years, including the bombing of the old Bailey in London.

The fact that it's not fiction it makes it a lot more interesting to watch. It's very raw, and at times very painful to watch. Rightly or wrongly, It was incredible for me to see the conviction of some of the IRA members, especially the two sisters, and what they were prepared to do for the cause of a unified Ireland.

I think everyone should be watching it to remember and not forget this tragic contemporary history.