Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2234 in DVD
• Released on: 2000-07-18
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Dubbed, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 145 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Because Frank McCourt's bestselling, Pulitzer Prize-winning memoir Angela's Ashes was dearly embraced by millions of readers, it was perhaps inevitable that Alan Parker's film version would prove somewhat disappointing. McCourt's book is blessed with subtleties of language and detailed observation that do not easily lend themselves to screen interpretation, and Parker's film suffers from an overly literal, reverently sombre approach that lacks the cumulative emotions of McCourt's account of impoverished youth in Ireland. And where McCourt was able to enliven his family's suffering with tenacious humour and fighting Irish spirit, Parker's film provides precious little uplift in the course of 145 minutes.

The film is by no means an artistic failure. While admirably avoiding sentiment, Parker is nearly peerless in his direction of children, and the three actors playing Frank at ages 7, 11, and 15 are uniformly superb. As photographed by Michael Seresin, the re-created lanes of Limerick, Ireland are almost painfully authentic in the cold, grey dampness that permeates nearly every scene (this is surely one of the wettest films ever made). As the McCourt parents--chronically depressed Angela and recklessly drunken Malachy--Emily Watson and Robert Carlyle successfully bypass the pitfalls of melodrama in a film that could have wallowed in bathos. And while Parker's anecdotal approach falls short in conveying the fullness of McCourt's experience (the director fared better with the Irish rockers of The Commitments), Angela's Ashes captures a specific time and place with vivid force, remaining loyal to the spirit of Frank McCourt's beloved tale of survival. --Jeff Shannon

Special Features
1.85 Wide Screen
DVD 9
German
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital 5.1 English German
Dolby Digital 5.1
2 Trailers
Featurette
Commentaries
Interviews
Filmographies
English

Synopsis
ANGELA'S ASHES is the true story of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Frank McCourt (played at various ages by Joe Breen, Ciaran Owens, and Michael Legge), whose personal memoir became a worldwide phenomenon. When eldest son Frank's baby sister dies and father Malachy (Robert Carlyle) can find no work, the McCourt family is forced to leave America and return to their native Ireland, where conditions are even more destitute than in Brooklyn. Malachy's northern accent is frowned upon in Limerick, keeping him on welfare and the family living in poverty. Things turn even more sour when two more children die and Malachy leaves the family to go to work (or, better yet, drink) in England. He never returns. Frank struggles through the poverty and his new role as man of the house, but throughout the seeming hopelessness his dream of traveling to America keeps him determined and optimistic. The three little-known actors playing Frank are impressive, and Emily Watson gives a quiet, impassioned performance as Frank's mother, Angela. Michael Seresin's photography underscores the deft direction of Alan Parker (THE COMMITMENTS, EVITA), infusing the story with beauty even at its most desperate moments.

Customer Reviews

Fantastic - Great if you love true story films
If you like watching films that are true story films (eg. great escape, calender girls etc..) then you'll find this amazing.
The story of Frank McCourt's childhood upbringing in Irish poverty.
Its quite astonishing all the things he did and had to go through and you're kept watching as its so interesting.
I highly recommend you buy it - if you're more of a person for crime or sci-fi thrillers you probably shouldn't.
If you like comedy then this is funny in places eg. at one time Frank was in a hospital bed and people were praying like mad for him and then a Dr came in and farted beside him.
" I was going to die, but what did i care? But it was only when this Dr came to check on me that I knew i was going to get better, because no Dr would ever fart in the presence of a dying person..."
The DVD also includes special Frank McCourt's Commentry of the film - so you get to see the film all again (in silent) with Frank talking about the scenes and saying things like "this was hard to watch as this looked so like it did all those years ago.." and "this was hard to watch as well, as this was the last time i ever saw my father. We got a telegram of money, then two letters and i don't know what happened to him.."
Its quite a moving film, I highly recommend it.

fabulous
Absolutely fabulous, everyone should read this, every page is shocking, and i cant wait to read the next one "tis"

Cinematic version was a tough act to follow after the book
The trouble with making a movie out of a Pulitzer Prize winning book is that no matter how good and true to the book it is, it will usually be a disappointment. This has a lot to do with the difference between reading a story and seeing one. When one reads a book, it is usually done over time, perhaps a week or two. The words stir the imagination and the scenes described become images, usually more illusory than real. There is plenty of time for this process to work. A film, in contrast, is viewed over a period of about two hours, where the viewer is perceiving rather than imagining. The portrayals are well defined and no matter how creative the director, it is very difficult to create scenes that equal those of readers who have previously conjured fantastic images in their heads.

I believe this is the reason this film was such a disappointment to so many viewers who had read the book. Thankfully, I saw the film first, so I had no preconceived notions. With that fresh perspective, I must say that it was outstanding.