Okay, so I was messing around and decided to do a deep dive into that “Michael Collins” movie, specifically about this guy, Joe O’Reilly, who’s always mentioned as being Collins’s caddie. First off, I tried to get clear on whether this O’Reilly character was actually with Collins when things went down at Beal na mBlath on August 22, 1922. Turns out, he wasn’t there. That was a bit of a surprise, honestly.
Then I got to thinking about Harry Boland. I did some digging and found out Boland was chilling in America when Collins came back to Ireland with the treaty. That’s a whole other can of worms, but I kept that in mind.
Delving into the film itself
So, with that cleared up, I popped in Neil Jordan’s film, “Michael Collins” from 1996. I wanted to see how it handled the whole story, especially the bits about Collins’ career as an Irish Republican hero. It’s one of those movies that you’ve probably heard about but never actually sat down to watch. I figured now was as good a time as any.
It’s a pretty intense film, to say the least. I spent a good chunk of the evening following along, trying to match up the movie’s timeline with what I’d read. It definitely gives you a lot to chew on, especially if you’re into Irish history or just like a good historical drama.
I ended up pausing and rewinding quite a bit, making notes and trying to piece together the whole picture. It felt like I was doing a bit of detective work myself, which was kind of cool. All in all, it was a pretty productive way to spend a few hours. And hey, I learned a few things along the way, which is always a plus!
- Started by clarifying Joe O’Reilly’s whereabouts on that key date.
- Dug up info on Harry Boland’s location during a crucial time.
- Watched the “Michael Collins” film by Neil Jordan.
- Took notes and tried to align the film’s narrative with historical facts.
It was a pretty interesting deep dive. I felt like I was putting together a puzzle, one piece at a time.
