Rooney’s Irish landscapes

Manon Martini, Online Arts + Lit Editor, analyses Irish landscapes in Sally Rooney’s novel adaptations

IN much Anglo-American reception of its film and literature, Irish heritage and its artistic reflections are ignored. Such can be said for Sally Rooney’s novels and their respective screen adaptations directed by Lenny Abrahamson and Hettie Macdonald. The Irish landscape depicted in these series has been largely characterised as a mere passive backdrop as opposed to a complex political and social setting with intrinsic ties to the central narrative of the show.

In Rooney’s most recent novel, Beautiful World, Where Are You (2021), Alice writes an email to her friend Eileen which reads “One of the problems is that Dublin is, and I mean literally and topographically, flat — so that everything has to take place on a single plane. Other cities have metro systems, which add depth, and steep hills or skyscrapers for height, but Dublin has only short squat grey buildings and trams that run along the street.” Alice’s Marxist analysis of Ireland’s topography as intrinsi - cally capitalist and totalising is translated beautifully onto the screen in Normal People (2020) through wide panning shots of Ireland that extenuate this ‘flatness’. The melancholy beauty of the setting on screen, however, evokes an uncertain ambiguity for a viewer as to whether to accept Alice’s perception of Ireland or consider a Marxist nuance of equal footing that negates a spatial position of dominance in Ireland. Further engagement with setting can be observed as Connell takes Marianne to the abandoned Mountain View housing estate known by locals as ‘The Ghost’. These ‘ghost estates’ remain a common feature across Ireland today as a result of the 2008 crash which meant that building contractors were forced to abandon the estates midway through construction. Shots of huge bare concrete facades accompanied by the sound of whipping plastic sheets covering the window holes serve as an audio-visual urban palimpsest in which various layers of history, culture and politics stack on top of one another through setting. The shot of Marianne and Connell standing in front of these vast and barren buildings evokes a sense of the economic instability and unrest of the past that they represent. The hostility of the whipping sheets and the sense of abandonment within the estate reflects the politi - cal abandonment of the working class by the state during the 2008 crash. A more intimate engagement with this traumatic past is presented as Connell and Marianne exchange careful dialogue evoked by their setting. Connell comments that the estate “is probably three times the size of [his] house” and goes on to express his disdain at the fact that the estate is “just lying empty, no one living in it”. Marianne’s reply remains emotionally impartial, making a insensitive comment for which she “immediately feels foolish for not realising what he was thinking about.” Their direct interaction with the landscape evokes their present dynamic as well as the social politics of the country’s past. It is in these small pockets of dialogue and their accompanying emotions that we experience the true significance of the Irish landscape in our viewing of the Normal People series.

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It is clear that an acknowledgement and appreciation of Ireland and its associated memoryscape is fundamental in an effective analysis of Rooney’s work. In acknowledging setting not as a mere backdrop but as an integral intertwined part of literary and filmic structure we are able to uphold a much deeper understanding of not only the setting itself, but of character, dialogue, history and the wider social issues that they represent. As Sean O’Neil summarises most perfectly: “Rooney’s books happen in a particular place. Her study of relationships is all the more rewarding when you give that place a name. Its name is Ireland: Sally Rooney is Irish.”

Madison Sohngen, Screen Editor, discusses BAFTA controversy surrounding the win of the Banshees of Inisherin

MARTIN McDonagh’s heartfelt Banshees of Inisherin received its rightful accolade at the BAFTAs this year, securing both Best Actor and Actress in a supporting role for Barry Keoghan and Kerry Condon while also bringing home the award for Best Original Screenplay. However, the final BAFTA of Outstanding British Film was greeted by the cast with an air of awkwardness. This was expressed by director Martin McDonagh as he accepted the award, explaining how “every Irish person in the cast and crew are kinda going best what award?”.

The film is set during the Irish War of Independence (1919-1921), and the characters are situated in an idyllic fictitious island off the coast of mainland Ireland. Unexpectedly, the sheer vastness of the landscapes, featuring luscious greenery and immense cliffs, seem to only accentuate the characters and their seemingly petty grievances. We are constantly submerged in the intricate details of their complicated relationships. What makes the film so special is how the simple issue of Colm wishing to end his friendship with Padraic mutates into such a complex social conundrum. These factors, along with the inclusion of elements of Irish folklore and the all-Irish cast accumulates to create a quintessential Irishness in which its national identity is inter- woven into the very essence of the film. So why then, did this undoubtedly Irish film fall into this BAFTA category?

In his speech, McDonagh continues to thank “the wonderful Film4 [who] were a major part in the financing for this” before proceeding to thank the British crew who helped make the film what it is. In this way he answers his own question: the funding which made the film possi ble to exist in the first place originated from British production company Film4 as well as other financial assistance from a US production company. Therefore, the category choice is simply a matter of financial technicality. However, it still leads to the question of whether this award in any way diminishes part of the movie’s appeal? Does it partially strip it of its core identity? Considering the history of hostility between the two nations is it an insensitive choice?

Personally, I don’t think so, in my opinion it is possible to show appreciation for the names who fundamentally created the film, while also celebrating the film’s strong national identity.

Notably, in his acceptance speech for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Barry Keoghan dedicates the film to “the kids that are dreaming to be something from the area that I came from”. To Keoghan, his experience growing up in inner city Dublin and spending his formative years being passed around from foster family to foster family is embedded in the sense of Irish solidarity that permeates through every aspect of the film. Additionally, I believe this is reaffirmed by the level of intimacy achieved by the film. The film is primarily dominated by two people, Padraic and Colm and the demise of their friendship instigated by Colm simply deciding he doesn’t like Padraic anymore. Something at first so trivial (and frankly boring) expands exponentially to become the most important thing in the world for the characters (and the audience). Additionally, the very fact that there are few characters on the periphery means the audience gets well acquainted with each and every one, transporting them into this community.

SOMETHING AT FIRST SO TRIVIAL...EXPANDSEXPONENTIALLY TO BECOME THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN THE WORLD

Therefore, with no true ill will intended from the BAFTAs, Banshees of Inisherin should revel in all the love and buzz that comes its way.