Middletown
Brian Kirk
Ireland | 2006 | 88mins | 35mm | Colour

There are certain people who are chosen by God for some special purposes of His own. And we believe you are such a one…

Gabriel has spent the majority of his lifetime in a religious enclave and is now returning to his rural home as the new parish priest. He finds the town caught up in a spiral of drinking and gambling, and sees his brother Jim and sister-in-law Caroline caught up in the excess.

Gabriel soon learns that Caroline does not attend church and refused to have her child baptised while Jim, the black sheep of the family, finds himself caught between his brother’s faith and his wife’s headstrong resolve.

Middletown tells the story of two brothers wracked by internecine rivalry – one for the love of his family, the other for the love of his God. The film is a poignant reminder of the destructive power of fundamental belief and ultimately the redemptive nature of love.