The Journey, 2016.
Directed by Nick Hamm.
Starring Timothy Spall, Colm Meaney, Toby Stephens, John Hurt and Freddie Highmore.
SYNOPSIS:
In the middle of the Northern Ireland power sharing discussions of 2006, Democratic Unionist Party leader Ian Paisley and Sinn Fein politician Martin McGuinness find themselves sharing a car to the airport. The two are sworn enemies, on a political and personal level, but on this journey they take a huge leap of faith and change the course of their country forever.
The death of Sinn Fein’s Martin McGuinness at the start of the year has given Nick Hamm’s The Journey a topicality it could never have expected. But there’s a reference in the film that makes what we’re watching, and its historical background, even more relevant. McGuinness (Colm Meaney) tells Paisley (Timothy Spall) to his face that, during The Troubles, he was the most popular politician in Europe – “and the most extreme.” Sound familiar? It should do – and there’s not just the sense that we’ve been here before, but that we never learn.
If you’ve ever wondered what goes on behind closed doors during large scale political negotiations, this won’t shed too much light on them. Because The Journey is a fictionalised account of how the 2006 St Andrews talks resulted in power sharing in Northern Ireland, making Paisley First Minister and Martin McGuinness his deputy in 2007. With the talks barely under way, Paisley has to go home for the night because it’s his 50th wedding anniversary and he’s not going to miss the celebrations. A flight is waiting for him at Edinburgh Airport, and he has to be driven there, but he has a travelling companion. McGuinness. Protocol dictates they don’t travel alone. And it’s on that drive that they reach an understanding.
Their road trip, and the film’s title, is an unsurprising metaphor for what happens to the two men and Northern Ireland itself. The fate of their country is further represented by a stag that hits the car, prompting memories of Stephen Frears’ The Queen. It respects other conventions as well, with the gathering clouds of the storm looming in the background, the rain falling heavily but sunshine always managing to break through the glowering skies.
The two make halting progress. They live up to their images, with McGuinness the more inclined to compromise, but with the trademark style of a politician – never admit, never apologise. And Paisley, entrenched in the past, digging in his heels and hardly ever appearing to budge. Until he shows he’s human and an old man. His passing years hang over him, along with an increasing frailty: he conscious that his time is running out.
There are times when director Nick Hamm seems to tease his audience. During The Troubles, comedians delighted in impersonating Paisley. Here, although we’re watching him almost from the start, we don’t hear his voice until at least 15 minutes into the film – and then he’s praying. We’re made to wait to hear what Timothy Spall will do with the character and that famous voice. Admittedly, his is the showy role, but it’s on that also comes weighed down by the audience’s preconceived notions. He has to do more, to give us a sense of the man behind the public image. And that’s what we get.
Spall’s Paisley isn’t without humour – watch his face at the end of the scene in the petrol station. He’s also the focal point for some set pieces, especially when the two stop off at a vandalized church. He stands in a pulpit, his natural habitat, while McGuinness admits he’s never been one for public speaking. Colm Meaney has to ensure he’s not overshadowed by his co-star. The two are well-matched as adversaries and in their performances.
Despite how it sounds, The Journey isn’t a two hander. In the background, keeping an eye on the pair through the camera in the car, are the secret service and Prime Minister Tony Blair, Toby Stephens who creates an ingratiating, seemingly indecisive politician with a real killer instinct when it comes to getting what he wants. The film also gives us one of John Hurt’s last roles as the head of the secret service who’s seen it all before but suspects things might change this time. The two men in the car are getting old and life is too short.
The Journey leans heavily on its two leading men, who are the main reason for watching it. It looks like it’s based on a contrivance, but has its roots in fact and, after a while, it becomes the accepted backdrop for the start of the reconciliation between the two. You know it’s going to be a bumpy ride, but you’re there for the duration, so you are.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★★★ / Movie: ★★★
SEE ALSO: Listen to our exclusive interview with The Journey’s Timothy Spall and Nick Hamm here
Freda Cooper – Follow me on Twitter, check out my movie blog and listen to my podcast, Talking Pictures.
Originally published May 4, 2017. Updated April 15, 2018.
