Perfectly adorable

Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

There is definitely an excellent idea hidden in the background of the film. Unfortunately, it's difficult to find it.

The narrative arc of 'White Irish Drinkers' is so stale that it feels like a previously viewed film. Set amongst the mean streets of 1970s Brooklyn, a blue collar Irish-American is offered a scholarship at a prestigious art school - but inexplicable loyalty to a petty criminal older brother, a violent drunken father and a depressed mother prevents him making the obvious decision. The sensitive hero tries to overcome the film's dull dialog and direction while he wrestles with his conscience and churns out some mediocre scribbles in the basement.The lame tale limps from one hackneyed scene to the next, as unconvincing sub-plots involving a trite romance and a theater owner's rock concert scam provide some minor relief from the family squabbles, macho posturing and fistfights. Eventually the story arrives at a predictable tragedy, followed by a maudlin display of grief, before a last punch to the face thankfully brings down the final curtain.

White Irish Drinkers is a coming of age story, centered around a boy who doesn't quite fit in with the rest of his dysfunctional family. It's a common theme in many similar films and to be honest, I didn't see anything here, that made this movie stand out from the rest of them. This is just another coming of age film without many surprises. The story wasn't bad, but it wasn't anything special. The acting was OK, as was the pace of the film. I'm finding it really difficult to say anything positive or negative about White Irish Drinkers, because the truth is, it's just a simple, ordinary story that I've seen a hundred times before. The names and places always change, and there was a familiar face or two, but nothing about this film stands out positively or negatively in any way. It's just a very common type of story with a very ordinary cast. Everyone does their job and the story gets told, I don't know what you'll think, but my reaction to this film was simple neutrality. A decent movie, but easily forgotten, as nothing made any kind of impact on me at all.

The movie is well done and the acting stellar. But it is burdened with a hackneyed plot: talented kid seeks to escape the stranglehold of his low-life culture, but family loyalties are ties not easily broken. This version takes us into the clutches of 1975 Irish-Americans, living their dreary lives in Brooklyn. The talented misfit is an artist with a drunken father, a weak mother, and a gang-banger older brother. The only question for the audience is whether it will end in despair or with a little Hollywood high-five.Yes, the plot is a universal one: you love your family, but you need to escape it and find your own way... A coming-of-age story. This one bothered me because the mother Margaret (Karen Allen) was such a beat- down martyr. Bad enough that the father (Stephen Lang) was the worst kind of put-your-dukes-up cliché of an Irish drunk. But the movie didn't live up to the flip side of the stereotype: the Irish woman who takes charge and who goes all out on behalf of her sons... or at least screams good and loud about it.In the end I just wound up being mad at the whole lot of them.

Amazing and inspiring film! After watching this I felt as though I wanted to tell my own story. John Gray does a great job of piecing together the parts of this film and relaying a truly compelling story.The acting is what makes this movie. The fresh young faces are truly talented from the core and it is clear that their talents have been honed by training. Yet they are so real and genuine and you can't help but feel connected to them.There are twists & turns to keep you interested and the ending is awesome. I applaud John Gray for sticking it to the man. Go & enjoy!!