Director: Cathy Brady
Writer: Cathy Brady (Screenplay)
Starring: Kate Dickie, Nora-Jane Noone, Martin McCann, David Pearse, Helen Behan, Nika McGuigan
Plot: The story of two sisters who grew up on the fractious Irish border. When one of them, who has been missing, finally returns home, the intense bond with her sister is re-ignited. Together they unearth their mother’s past but uncovered secrets and resentments which have been buried deep, threaten to overwhelm them.
Runtime: 1 Hour 25 Minutes
There may be spoilers in the rest of the review
Story: Wildfire starts when Kelly (McGuigan) returns home after being reported missing for the last two years, her sister Lauren (Noone) isn’t happy to see her at first, with the amount of worrying she went through, but after time they get back to their old ways, while coming together to try and piece together the memories of their mother, whose reputation has come back to light.
Thoughts on Wildfire
Characters – Kelly has returned from being missing for 2 years, she isn’t as stable as she could be still dealing with the trauma of her mother’s death, the mystery about where she has been is key to her character’s action which are always unsure of what she would be doing. Lauren is the sister that spent time looking for Kelly, while trying to get on with her life, she isn’t happy to start with before recapturing the magic they once had, she does start to change as the rumours of their mother start coming back to light, with her always hearing people talking about her behind her back. Everyone else we meet at people that have known the sisters for their whole lives, showing how gossip can cause more damage.
Performances – Nora-Jane Noone and Nika McGuigan are both wonderful to watch tother, with Nora-Jane showing how a stable life can become interrupted, while Nika shows us how an unstable character can find their footing in life.
Story – The story here follows two sisters that have been separated for a couple of years, only for them coming together to finally tackle the biggest problem in their life, how they dealt with the loss of their mother. This is a story that shows us just how close a sister relationship would be without seeing each other for years, while also how much damage losing a family member would be. We see the change that comes from both sisters in a world that isn’t going to be easy to get through, where the rumor mill can build the pressure on the people it is affecting.
Settings – The film is set in the small town, which will see how the history of what has happened will always manage to come back to haunt them, with the rumours always being there after tragedy.
Scene of the Movie – The night on the drinks.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Too much mystery about where Kelly had been,
Final Thoughts – Wildfire is a powerful story that is wonderfully acted by Nora-Jane Noone and Nika McGuigan that highlights the importance of family through grief.
