I was Coming Down to Joy. Here I Stand with My Everlasting Love.
"We all have a story to tell. But what makes each one different is not how the story ends, but rather, the place where it begins."
—Granny
Belfast is a 2021 Coming of Age Story set in the titular Northern Irish city in The '60s. It follows Buddy, a child living with his working class family as he navigates the culture and social tumult of the era, such as The Troubles.
The movie was written and directed by Kenneth Branagh, inspired by his own childhood experiences. It stars Jude Hill as Buddy, Caitríona Balfe and Jamie Dornan as Buddy's parents, and Ciarán Hinds and Judi Dench as his grandparents. The movie was released in the United States on November 12, 2021. The trailer can be seen here
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Tropes Associated with Belfast Include:
- Actor Allusion: Buddy gets a James Bond Aston Martin Corgi toy for Christmas. Judi Dench played M from GoldenEye until Spectre.
- And Starring: The main credits end with "And Introducing Jude Hill", after all the other stars have been credited.
- Arc Number: Subtly done: behind Buddy near the beginning of the film (just as the violence is beginning) a house number 13 is shown; at the end, as the bus pulls away taking the family to (presumably) a better life, a different house number 7 is shown.
- Author Avatar: Buddy's whole family are loosely inspired by Kenneth Branagh's own, with Buddy being his personal stand-in.
- Big Bad: Billy Clanton fulfills this role, menacing Buddy and his family and eventually forcing his family to leave Belfast.
- Blasting It Out of Their Hands: With a brick! Billy Clanton is raising up a gun during the climactic showdown in the street, when Pa throws a brick and knocks the gun right out of his hand.
- Book Ends: Color shots of present-day Belfast begin and end the film.
- Brick Joke: During one of the early scenes when Buddy's Ma is opening a letter, an advert for washing powder is heard from the TV, boasting that it is biological. Later, after Ma has caught Buddy with the washing powder that he has looted from the shop, she demands to know why he stole it. He tearfully says "It's biological."
- Call-Forward: With Buddy being an Author Avatar for Branagh, a few items seen throughout the film, including Thor comics and an Agatha Christie novel, serve as this for Branagh's later film career.
- Chekhov's Skill: Pa's Improbable Aiming Skills are demonstrated when he does a little William Telling trick, knocking an object off of Will's head by throwing a ball. At the climax of the movie, he tosses a brick and knocks a gun out of Billy Clanton's hand.
- Childhood Friend Romance: Ma and Pa.
- Deliberately Monochrome: Excluding the Book Ends montages of modern-day Belfast, Branagh shot the movie in black-and-white, except the movies and the play.
- Diegetic Switch: "The Ballad of High Noon" is first heard over the TV at Buddy's house as High Noon plays, then switches to background music as torch-wielding Protestants patrol the street at night.
- Every Car Is a Pinto: Shoving a burning rag into a car's gas tank probably will make it blow up, actually.
- Good Parents: Ma and Pa are both lovely, caring parents towards Buddy. Meanwhile, Granny and Pop are equally good grandparents.
- Happily Married:
- Though they're in a rough spot right now and have their share of spats, Ma and Pa's love for each other is still very clear and overcomes any such issues.
- Pop and Granny are still very much in love, with their many years together not doing a thing to dim their romance.
- Hitler Cam: Pa is filmed this way when he's being threatened by Billy to illustrate his resolve. Unusually for this trope, he's shown from the back.
- I Read It for the Articles: Pa takes the family to watch One Million Years B.C. and justifies his choice as something that would be educational for the kids (which is funny as the film is notorious for its Artistic License). Ma is skeptical and thinks he just wants to see Raquel Welch as a Nubile Savage.
- It Will Never Catch On:
- Pa, unnerved by the recent riot, says "All that nonsense will stop soon enough." That nonsense lasts for 3 decades.
- For a lighter example, Granny scoffs at the concept of a film about a flying car but, when the family go and see it, she's as captivated as Buddy when Chitty flies off the cliff.
- Knight of Cerebus: Billy Clanton, a genuinely terrifying presence in an otherwise fairly light-hearted film. This is downplayed, however, since the danger of the Troubles is ever-present, even in scenes where Billy is not directly involved.
- Mama Bear: Ma is angry when she finds that Buddy stole a box of washing powder during a riot, but she becomes furious when she finds out that it was Moira that led him there in the first place.
- Monochrome to Color: Inverted with it starting in color but changing to black and white for most of the movie.
- Mood Whiplash: The opening scene is whimsical, with Buddy charging around his street pretending to be a knight, using a trash can lid for a shield — until he is suddenly confronted by an armed Protestant mob bearing down on his neighborhood.
- Moving-Away Ending: The movie ends with Buddy and his family leaving Belfast for England, leaving behind only Buddy's grandmother.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Buddy's older cousin Moira, after roping him into Billy Clanton's gang, stands in shock after the confrontation with Clanton and the police, and rushes to hug Buddy and his family afterward.
- No Name Given: Buddy's family are simply identified as "Ma", "Pa", "Pop", and "Granny". And presumably, "Buddy" is a nickname.
- Nice Guy: Pop is the warmest, kindest, and most loving grandfather that a kid could ask for.
- Orbital Shot: The camera does two full circles around Buddy as, while he's goofing around in the street, he suddenly comes face-to-face with a Protestant mob, there to drive the Catholics out of the neighborhood.
- Oscar Bait: The film covers several typical Oscar Bait traits: Deliberately Monochrome, dealing with people keeping their spirits up during a harsh historical period and for being a Very Special Episode to Branagh as it's partially autobiographical, but ultimately subverted as it didn't earn any Oscars despite getting seven nominations.
- Parents as People: Ma and Pa do a good job of raising their boys right in a properly loving manner. At the same time, it's made clear that these duties are anything but easy, with their unpleasant circumstances weighing heavy on both throughout.
- Papa Wolf: Pa does not react kindly to his family being threatened.Pa: Touch my family and I'll kill ya.
- Shown Their Work: According to the December 24 Belfast Telegraph, Christmas Day 1969 was forecast to be "bright, but with squally showers."
- Splash of Color: While most of the film is in black and white, the movies that Buddy goes to see (One Million Years B.C., Chitty Chitty Bang Bang) are shown in color, as is the stage production of A Christmas Carol that he goes to with Granny. One shot captures both the actors from the play in color and the audience in black and white. This is probably meant to demonstrate how much Buddy (and Ken Branagh) like theater and the movies.
- Toxic Friend Influence: Moira, the older cousin. She ropes Buddy into shoplifting, then drags him into her gang, which turns out to be Billy Clanton's Protestant goon squad. After the confrontation with Clanton, she's shown having a My God, What Have I Done? moment as the riot still rages behind her.
- Working-Class Hero: Buddy and his family.
- Would Hurt a Child: Billy has no problem using Buddy as a human shield during a confrontation with the police. Doubles as Would Hit a Girl because he has no issues with using Ma as a shield either.
"Hello, Belfast!"
"Top of the world!"
"Top of the world!"
