Michael Connolly (Steven Robertson) has cerebral palsy and is
living out his life in a home for the disabled. Life for Michael
is pretty mundane and routine until he meets a new resident at the
home named Rory O’Shea (James McAvoy). Rory and Michael quickly
become friends and their lives, especially Michael’s changes
immensely.
CRITIQUE
I know this is going to sound very cliché, but “Rory O’Shea Was
Here” is a film that is very inspiring and I enjoyed it immensely. The
film begins with Michael Connolly going through his every daily
routine at the home. We see him watching boring TV shows, suffering
the indignity of not being able to bath himself, and dealing with the
constant frustration of trying to communicate with people who can’t
understand a word he’s saying.
Then one day a new resident named Rory O’Shea arrives and changes
everything. Michael and Rory become fast friends, but not because they
immediately like each other. They become friends because they can do
things for each other. A cool scene early in the film demonstrates
this point. Michael helps Rory with his spiked hair and Rory becomes
Michael’s interpreter. At this point Michael’s eyes light up like
Christmas tree, Rory O’Shea has sparked something in him and this is
only the beginning. While on the streets collecting money for the
home, Rory and Michael go to a bar, hit on women and get drunk. Of
course doing these aren’t special, but to Michael used to the
restrictive life in the home it must’ve been special and incredibly
exciting. Rory ultimately convinces Michael to leave the home to live
independently. The rest of the film shows Rory and Michael living life
on their own terms.
The performances in “Rory O’Shea Was Here” are outstanding. James
McAvoy and Steven Robertson are so good as Rory and Michael, that I
thought they were both paralyzed for real. James McAvoy was very funny
as Rory O’Shea, his attitude and energy are in abundance every second
that he is on screen. Steven Robertson’s performance as Michael
Connolly is even better, especially given the fact that it’s hard to
understand what he says, no subtitles here people. I could go on and
on about this movie. “Rory O’Shea Was Here” is inspiring without being
over handed and funny without being over the top and corny. I urge
you to check this movie out; it will make you think about how you live
your own life.
THE
VIDEO
Focus Features Home Entertainment presents “Rory O’Shea Was Here”
in anamorphic widescreen with an aspect ratio of 2.35. The subtitle
options available are French and Spanish. This DVD also has captions
for the hearing impaired in English. The DVD print is very good, this
movie takes place in a variety of locations and everything looks
natural, colors are well defined throughout.
THE
AUDIO
Focus Features Home Entertainment presents “Rory O’Shea Was Here”
in English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. Nothing special here,
this movie is all about the dialogue so the center channel gets all of
the action. The rest of the speakers kick in every once in a while.
Not a knock against the DVD, the sound in this film is appropriately
minimal.
THE
EXTRAS
Inside
The Prison Cell: An
unnecessary but funny deleted scene that expands upon Rory’s attempt
to get arrested by the police. In the scene Rory is put in a precinct
jail and we see the cop giving Rory special treatment because of his
disability. Rory of course wants to be treated like any other
prisoner.
The
Good Old Days: Another
completely unnecessary deleted scene. It’s as simple as that.
Alternate Ending:
Interesting but again not necessary, it gives the movie a “Hollywood”
type ending by wrapping everything up in positive light. The ending
used in the film is much better.
Extended Party Sequence: An extension of the party sequence in the movie, which is an
important scene. The added material presented here is not needed and
you can see why it was cut from the film.
The extras on this DVD are underwhelming and this is a
disappointment.
FINAL
THOUGHT
“Rory O’Shea Was Here” is a film not to be missed. The film carries
a message about how we all should live our lives. This message is
presented in a very entertaining way, thankfully without beating you
over the head. The only thing negative about the DVD are the extras
which are minimal at best. A director’s commentary or a making-of
featurette is sorely missing. So get out there live life to the
fullest and pick up this DVD while you’re at it.
