In the Name of the Father

In 1975, Gerard Conlon was convicted in a British courtroom for the murders of several people who were killed when two bombs were planted two years earlier in the Surrey town of Guildford. Gerard (Gerry), alongside three others, was sentenced to life imprisonment. The problem was, none of them were actually guilty. Their convictions were based on confessions obtained through a combination of torture and intimidation, and once the authorities knew they had the wrong people, they buried the evidence to save face. These individuals served fifteen years in prison before finally managing to get their convictions overturned. In the Name of the Father tells this incredible story. The title comes from Gerry’s determination to keep fighting for freedom in his father’s name after he’d died in prison, never getting the justice he deserved.

The story begins in Belfast when Gerry (Daniel Day-Lewis) is mistaken for an IRA sniper when he is goofing off on the rooftops of a building. He is shot at and flees until a riot breaks out, and he is able to escape. To avoid an IRA reprisal against him, Gerry is sent off to London by his father, Giuseppe (Pete Postlethwaite). While in London, Gerry burgles a prostitute’s flat, stealing £700. While he is taking drugs in the park with his friend, Paul Hill (John Lynch) and a homeless Irish man named Charlie Burke (Joe McPartland), an explosion happens in Guildford, killing several off-duty soldiers and a civilian while injuring many others. 

Sometime after returning to Belfast, Gerry is arrested on terrorist charges by the British Army and Royal Ulster Constabulary. He and Paul, as well as two others, are dubbed in the media as the Guildford Four and are tortured both physically and psychologically until they eventually sign confessions to the bombing despite being innocent of the attack. After a lengthy court case, they, alongside other members of the Conlon family, who are dubbed the Maguire Seven, are found guilty and sentenced to lengthy prison sentences, with the Guildford Four getting life sentences in a maximum-security prison. 

Gerry and his father serve in the same prison together, and while Danny has pretty much given up on the justice system, his father continues to work with Gareth Pierce (Emma Thompson), a lawyer who is pursuing evidence in an attempt to prove that there was a serious breach in justice with this case, especially after the real bomber, Joe McAndrew (Don Baker), another inmate, has already confessed to the crime. That confession has gone on deaf ears as the ones who prosecuted Gerry and the others don’t want the truth to get out and prove they knowingly prosecuted the wrong people. 

As a film, this is a compelling drama about injustice, designed to provoke outrage against the system that railroaded innocent people. In that way, this film is a success. The end of the film features text that proclaims none of the law enforcement was ever held accountable for what they did. The same goes for the real perpetrators of the Guildford bombing. This is still a mishandling of justice, and it is justified to watch this and be appalled by what transpired. 

Unfortunately, like almost all films that purport to be factual, this film modifies the realities significantly for the sake of drama; some say it modified the truth a bit too much. The film depicts Gerry and his father sharing a cell in prison when in reality they never served in the same prison, let alone the same cell. The trial was also heavily altered, so much so that participants were outraged at how inaccurate it was. Even worse was the depiction of Gerry as a bit on the heroic side when in reality he was looked at with bitterness by members of his family who served prison sentences in large part because of his confessions to the police during his interrogations. One such person, Anne Maguire, was highly critical of director Jim Sheridan for not bothering to contact her to get the other side of the story. This would have provided a more accurate depiction of Gerry Conlon than the one in the film. Instead, the film is based entirely on Gerry’s book, Proved Innocent: The Story of Gerry Conlon of the Guildford Four, a novel that plays up Gerry’s own views on how things played out. 

Daniel Day-Lewis is, of course, fabulous in this role. His character goes on a journey of maturity throughout the course of this film that can be seen visibly in the way Day-Lewis is conducting himself. During the early scenes, he is immature and wild, over-the-top, and obviously under the influence of illicit substances. This carries on into the trial as, even with his freedom at stake, he is quickly bored and playing little pranks on those around him, not taking the proceedings seriously. As the years go by in prison, he becomes a changed man. He becomes more serious and sullen, accepting at first that he will never be freed, then latching on to his father’s dying determination to make it happen against all odds. When Joe McAndrew first arrives in prison, Gerry at first looks up to him. That changes after a violent attack on a guard where Joe lights the man on fire. The years turn this young man into someone else, someone who is at first jaded, then quietly hopeful.

The turning point in the appeal comes when Gareth Pierce comes across a bit of evidence that conveniently has a Post-it note on it stating: Keep this from the defense. This didn’t happen in reality and is a sloppy way of wrapping up the court appeal. Emma Thompson is working overtime to sell this sudden break in the case, and she almost manages to overcome the absurdity of the moment…almost. While it is nice to see the original prosecutors squirming in court, the “evidence” used to get them to that point is so stupid that it defeats any sense of satisfaction that should be garnered by this plot contrivance.

Jim Sheridan tried to justify the creative license used in this film, claiming the film was not about the Guildford Four at all but about a “nonviolent parent.” But that is not what is on screen. Sure, there is a good deal of time when Gerry and his father are in prison and eventually reconcile after a lifetime of emotional trauma, but that isn’t the primary focus of the film, overall. Ultimately, this film will appeal more to those who are ignorant of the true details and prefer their legal dramas to echo those found on an average episode of L.A. Law. It’s well acted but poorly researched. It needed to encompass more than just one side of this story to come across as a well-rounded piece of cinema. Instead, it represents the book it is based on and was Oscar-nominated for that, but misrepresents the facts and comes across as one-sided and self-serving. It makes for good drama but nothing much else.

Academy Award Nominations:

Best Picture: Jim Sheridan

Best Director: Jim Sheridan

Best Adapted Screenplay: Jim Sheridan and Terry George

Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis

Best Supporting Actor: Pete Postlethwaite

Best Supporting Actress: Emma Thompson

Best Film Editing: Gerry Hambling

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Release Date: December 27, 1993

Running Time: 133 Minutes

Rated R

Starring: Daniel Day-Lewis, Emma Thompson, and Pete Postlethwaite

Directed By: Jim Sheridan