The Cherishing is a brilliant Irish Film Institute sponsored Short Film released to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rebellion and was directed by Dave Tynan.
Set in the notorious Dublin tenements, the story follows the Chambers family, dad fighting in France, mum Alice (Clare Dunne), 15 year old Noel (Ben Carolan) and various younger siblings jammed into a single room. Noel hangs out with his best mate Tom Dunne (Karl Rice) and his sister Mary (Roxana Nick Liam). News soon spreads of Sinn Fein's uprising and of widespread looting and one of the first shops hit was a sweet shop quickly plundered by starving tenement dwellers. Noel and Tom run for the shop and soon stuff their pockets with bonbons and retrieve a glass jar of lollipops that they hide in the local Catholic Church.
When the boys return for another haul, a young British Volunteer tries to keep order by first shooting in the air then shooting into the crowd firing a bullet into Tom's head killing him instantly. Noel runs and hides in a tiny basement until morning when things calm and he walks slowly and forlornly back to the tenement block to report the horrific news.
During Tom's wake, Noel grabs Mary and he retrieves the hidden jar of lollipops and is caught by the Priest. Still shocked by his mate's death, Noel feistily responds to the Priest's query as to where he got that he says, "Baby Jesus" and, throwing one lollipop that bounces off the Priest's head, he continues, "says you can only have the one" as he walks away, Irish humour at its spontaneous best.
Noel and Mary end the film sitting in a empty building above the still burning General Post Office watching the fighting whilst they scarf down several lollipops in succession.
All the actors do a superb job particularly 15 year old Ben Carolan as the central character. In 15 short minutes, the horrors of working class Irish urban life and the way children were swept up into the Easter Rising are brilliantly portrayed.
Set in the notorious Dublin tenements, the story follows the Chambers family, dad fighting in France, mum Alice (Clare Dunne), 15 year old Noel (Ben Carolan) and various younger siblings jammed into a single room. Noel hangs out with his best mate Tom Dunne (Karl Rice) and his sister Mary (Roxana Nick Liam). News soon spreads of Sinn Fein's uprising and of widespread looting and one of the first shops hit was a sweet shop quickly plundered by starving tenement dwellers. Noel and Tom run for the shop and soon stuff their pockets with bonbons and retrieve a glass jar of lollipops that they hide in the local Catholic Church.
When the boys return for another haul, a young British Volunteer tries to keep order by first shooting in the air then shooting into the crowd firing a bullet into Tom's head killing him instantly. Noel runs and hides in a tiny basement until morning when things calm and he walks slowly and forlornly back to the tenement block to report the horrific news.
During Tom's wake, Noel grabs Mary and he retrieves the hidden jar of lollipops and is caught by the Priest. Still shocked by his mate's death, Noel feistily responds to the Priest's query as to where he got that he says, "Baby Jesus" and, throwing one lollipop that bounces off the Priest's head, he continues, "says you can only have the one" as he walks away, Irish humour at its spontaneous best.
Noel and Mary end the film sitting in a empty building above the still burning General Post Office watching the fighting whilst they scarf down several lollipops in succession.
All the actors do a superb job particularly 15 year old Ben Carolan as the central character. In 15 short minutes, the horrors of working class Irish urban life and the way children were swept up into the Easter Rising are brilliantly portrayed.
