You can’t take another man’s fiddle
Perhaps it was the music, or the scenery, or the parallel to “my own culture”, but I really enjoyed tonight’s choice on the DVD spindle. Through a combination of luck and perseverence, I managed to find a copy of The Boys Of County Clare starring Colm Meany and Andrea Corr. Trek and eye candy. Don’t look for this one in a video club near me, unfortunately; it seems to have fared better on the other side of the pond than here.
Competition, rivalry and finally complicity. The brothers may not have seen each other for decades, but they remember every flaw in the other’s character. And therein lies the beauty of the movie. Even if the time and place are particular, the human values are universal. Besides, the truth always comes out. “You can’t take another man’s fiddle” rings as true as the line that I heard at my first Island dance: “You can’t fight with him. He’s my cousin”.
The plot sees two brothers head to head in a ceilidh band competition during the 1960’s. Ceilidh bands are still out there. I’ve listened to hours worth on Saturday nights, thanks to the stream from RTE. An acquired taste, but a ball to play in. The talent level is even, although I’d have thought that Andrea Corr would have tried to keep the illusion stronger. I guess she’s left the bow to her sister Sharon in “real life”. Besides, how can you resist a faking fiddler that has understood a chapter from the “chunderlist“?
Anyhow, although the language is somewhat more expletive deleted than we get on broadcast TV, the movie get two pinkies up from me. Since thumbs appear to have been copyrighted elsewhere in the known universe. If you have the chance, go fer it.
