Fantastic film, takes on a unique view of the IRA, showing them obviously as the heros for the first half, but then becoming completely unbiased for the second, letting the viewer decide weather or not it was right for the IRA to continue their fight, and the toll it took on the Irish people, after the british had withdrew their troops. Also the way it told the story for such an incredibly personal perspective, that of a grunt practically, allowed the film to show how the war/rebellion affected the people that it was supposedly being fought over. Fantastic acting throughout. Strong bonds to the characters because of the fantastic character development, yet managed to do it without lingering on the pasts of the characters for almost any time at all.

A really good movie about irish history between 1920-1922; Loach does not takes sides, he gives a clear vision of the political situation and the abuse of Britain and the violence of Black and Tans. I wonder how some journalists had the courage to compare Loach to Leni Riefenstahl O_O He has shown simply the thruth, not hiding the violence of IRA.

I am not a fan of war dramas so I didn't get into the film. But if this movie was not about Ireland, but Lithuania, it would mean something to me as much as it probably ment for irishmen.