Michael Ledo This is a film about family drama with a little bit of humor tossed in. The movie appears to have all the pieces of a decent film, yet afterwards, I couldn't help but think, "Is that all there is?"Cole (Michael Angarano) is a decent kid who attempts to lose himself in baseball. Unfortunately the family drama becomes a distraction. Mom (Melissa Leo) works for social services. Dad (Brendan Gleeson) drinks and looks for jobs in the paper. He has a secret. Terry (Tom Guiry) is the messed up older brother who has become a small time criminal. He hates his father. The sister, Kathleen (Emily VanCamp) is pregnant. She has moved out of the house. She was thinking about an abortion, but mom's guilt trip prevents it.The film progresses slowly so there are no surprises. The family, which should have come together long ago as a family, now attempts to do it after disaster has hit. The title, "Black Irish" didn't play into the film very well. This could have been anybody's family. I did not like this odd family film as much as "Another Happy Day."Parental Guide: F-bomb, no sex, no nudity.

escobar0813 I thought for sure that Black Irish was going to be like Southie packed with crime. Turns out this movie goes for a deeper more troubling look at turmoil within in a family. That's what made this one so good. You've got the good brother who is a baseball star who has to live in the shadow of what his no good brother does as a low level street punk. The teenage sister gets knocked up bringing more shame to the family. The father is a tortured man down on his luck with a history of failure. The mother is the bread winner trying to hold the family together. All in all it's not an uplifting movie to watch. It does have heart and great acting. A gem of a movie to see.

woodjump395 IN the past few years we have had plenty of south Boston films, and then there are the big ones: the departed and gone baby gone. And now black irish.The departed focused on the criminal and violent element, then gone baby gone was focused more one the police and physcological element. And black irish is now the south Boston family story. The performances are beyond exceptional but the stand out is Michael Angarano. I haven't seen him in anything but i knew who he was. But he blew me away with the emotional depth and range he portrayed. One of the things that surprised me was the lack of profanity and violence. Don't get me wrong there is cursing and a little bit of violence but nothing like the departed and gone baby gone. I think any fan of the other South Boston movies should see this, but even if you didn't like those others you should see this. Truly amazing.

jack-964 Black Irish is a view on the lives of a family over a period of some months. They struggle with each other over recognition, understanding, love, but always seem to fail. It could be any family, anywhere, with some bad luck. I wanted to give it a 10, but i rate too many 1's and 10's and so i try to think of reasons for deduction when i find something really good. So i came up with that this one deserves a 9 because there is no 'obvious' moralistic lesson in it. Then again, moral is subjective, so passing on this maybe i should give it extra credit, but i cant give an 11. Its just a family with bad luck.The acting of the non-celebrities is great, the story takes you into their lives, their hurt and leaves you wondering of your own family and all that ever happened.What is great about this one is that we are used to pick a bad guy, or woman, that you can put all the blame on. Hollywood usually helps steering you in doing so, but this time not. And that is more real than the designated bad man. One moment you think its the father being the bad man, then the mother, then the brother, or sister, but in the end they all do their little thing and just have or had bad luck. There is no bad man. No one is really to blame.And that is pretty insightful, yet difficult to understand, so i don't think a young audience would appreciate this movie. Its not a movie you walk away from with a smile on your face. Hence the title...Go see it.