leaving certificate | the m0vie blog

393. The Banshees of Inisherin – Leaving Cert 2024 (#—)

Posted on September 28, 2024 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn, Darren Mooney and Conor Murphy, this week with special guest Ciara Moloney, The 250 is a (mostly) weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released every Saturday at 6pm GMT.

This September, the podcast is going back to school, covering the films on the Irish Leaving Certificate that we have yet to cover. This time, Martin McDonagh’s The Banshees of Inisherin.

As the Civil War rages on the mainland, an even more intimate conflict is brewing on the idyllic Irish island of Inisherin. For years, Pádraig and Colm have been the best of friends, but that all changes one day when Colm decides the dissolve their acquaintance. Neither man is fully prepared for the consequences of that decision, and how it tears the island apart.

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: brenadan gleeson, ciara moloney, colin farrell, conor murphy, culture, diaspora, emigration, identity, irish, irish cinema, irish leaving certificate, irishness, leaving cert, leaving certificate, leaving certificate english, martin mcdonagh, podcast, Podcasts!, Stage, The 250, Theatre | Leave a comment »

391. Barbie – Leaving Cert 2024 (#—)

Posted on September 14, 2024 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn, Darren Mooney and Conor Murphy, this week with special guests Aoife Barry and Deirdre Molumby, The 250 is a (mostly) weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released every second Saturday at 6pm GMT, with the occasional bonus episode between them.

This September, the podcast is going back to school, covering the films on the Irish Leaving Certificate that we have yet to cover. This time, Greta Gerwig’s Barbie.

In Barbieland, every day is perfect. Just like yesterday. And just like tomorrow. However, one morning, Barbie wakes up and realises that things are not perfect at all. She finds herself contemplating mortality, tumbling through the air and walking on the soles of her feet. Thus begins an epic adventure that will take Barbie into a brave new realm: the real world.

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: aoife barry, barbie, blockbuster, brand-o-pics, buy-o-pics, capitalism, conor murphy, deirdre molumby, feminism, Greta Gerwig, i'm just ken, imdb, leaving cert, leaving certificate, margot robbie, masculinity, oppenheimer, podcast, pop cinema, Ryan Gosling, The 250, toxic masculinity | Leave a comment »

347. On the Waterfront – Leaving Cert 2023 (#187)

Posted on September 30, 2023 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn, Darren Mooney and Conor Murphy, this week with special guest Donald Clarke, The 250 is a weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released Saturdays at 6pm GMT.

This September, we are running a season looking at the films on the Irish Leaving Cert English Curriculum. So this week, Elia Kazan’s On the Waterfront.

A down-on-his-luck former prizefighter, Terry Malloy finds himself doing oddjobs for the local union boss Johnny Friendly. When one of these jobs ends with dock worker Joey Doyle thrown to his death before he was due to testify to corruption within the union, Terry begins to question and doubt his involvement. A burgeoning romance with Joey’s sister Edie gradually awakens Terry’s conscience, throwing him into conflict with everything that he has ever known.

At time of recording, it was ranked 187th on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: america, blacklist, Cold War, communism, conor murphy, donald clarke, education, elia kazan, english, history, huac, leaving cert, leaving certificate, leonard bernstein, marlon brando, on the waterfront, Russia | Leave a comment »

345. Diego Maradona – Leaving Cert 2023 (#—)

Posted on September 16, 2023 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn, Darren Mooney and Conor Murphy, this week with special guest Ross Whitaker, The 250 is a weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released Saturdays at 6pm GMT.

This September, we are running a season looking at the films on the Irish Leaving Cert English Curriculum. So this week, Asif Kapadia’s Diego Maradona.

In 1984, Argentinian footballer Diego Maradona transfers from F.C. Barcelona to S.S.C. Napoli. Less than a decade later, he will leave the club and the city under a cloud of controversy. In those intervening years, Maradona is everything: hero, villain, saviour, devil, man, legend. Is it possible to make sense of all the contradictions that bind the legendary footballer together?

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: conor murphy, Diego Maradona, documentary, documentary filmmaking, education, english curriculum, football, leaving cert, leaving cert english, leaving certificate, ross whitaker, Sports | Leave a comment »

344. Lady Bird – Leaving Cert 2023 (#—)

Posted on September 9, 2023 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn, Darren Mooney and Conor Murphy, this week with special guest Aoife Barry, The 250 is a weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released Saturdays at 6pm GMT.

This September, we are running a season looking at the films on the Irish Leaving Cert English Curriculum. So this week, Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird.

Going by the name “Lady Bird”, Christine McPherson begins her final year of high school in Sacramento, California. Caught in a tense love-hate relationship with her mother, Marion, Christine dreams of escaping her surroundings to go to college. However, over the course of that turbulent year, Christine becomes more aware of life outside herself.

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: barbie, California, coming of age, education, Greta Gerwig, history, irish, lady bird, leaving cert, leaving cert english, leaving certificate, memory, nostalgia, sacramento, saoirse ronan, secondary school, The 250 | Leave a comment »

343. Rosie – Leaving Cert 2023 (#—)

Posted on September 3, 2023 by Darren

Hosted by Andrew Quinn, Darren Mooney and Conor Murphy, The 250 is a weekly trip through some of the best (and worst) movies ever made, as voted for by Internet Movie Database Users. New episodes are released Saturdays at 6pm GMT.

This September, we are kicking off a season looking at the films on the Irish Leaving Cert English Curriculum. So this week, Paddy Breathnach’s Rosie.

Over the course of two days, an Irish family struggles to survive amid the nation’s ongoing homeless crisis. With the help of her husband John Paul, Rosie desperately tries to hold her family together as the situation grows increasingly dire.

At time of recording, it was not ranked on the list of the best movies of all time on the Internet Movie Database.

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Filed under: The 250 | Tagged: curriculum, education, exam, film, homelessness, Ireland, irish cinema, leaving cert, leaving cert english, leaving certificate, moe dunford, paddy breathnach, podcast, Roddy Doyle, rosie, Sarah Greene, School, teaching, The 250 | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: Cinema Paradiso (Theatrical Cut)

Posted on August 13, 2010 by Darren

Hmm… a dude who runs a film site loves a nostalgic movie about the power of cinema? I never could have called that one.

It's another day for you... for you and me in paradiso...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: cinema, cinema paradiso, cinema paradiso: director's cut, film, filme, giuseppe tornatore, italian cinema, leaving certificate, non-review review, nouvo cinema paradiso, review, subtitles, toto | 7 Comments »

Film Studies in the Leaving Certificate…

Posted on September 7, 2009 by Darren

I sat the Leaving Certificate over five years ago, so the memory of the examine is still fresh in my mind. For those international readers, that’s the exam we do at the end of secondary school before we go to college (it determines whether we get a place as we don’t really have college fees… yet). Anyway, no subject perplexed me as much as English did. here was a subject that could be interesting and compelling, but mostly ended up boring the pants off anyone sitting it. The subject is taught over two years with students choosing one core text (taken for a set list by the Department) and then three ‘comparative texts’ (also from a list, albeit a larger one). There were also poets and composition and all the stuff we would expect. I remember being excited when I heard that films were on this comparative list. But that soon changed when I learned which films. With all the kids going back to school, I wonder if film studies should be made a larger part of English studies, or if we simply need to revise which films we use and how we use them in the class room.