"The Snapper" is a BBC made-for-television production. The depiction of a contemporary Irish family has an excellent (and surprisingly graphic) script by obscure novelist Roddy Doyle, and there are enough plot complications to keep things interesting.
'Snapper' is Irish slang for a baby. The film stars Colm Meaney as the blustering head of an Irish household that includes his wife and several children. (Meaney is best known for his work on two "Star Trek" series.) Tina Kellegher plays his daughter, an unmarried young woman who has become pregnant.
The small town delights in gossiping about who the father is, until it is revealed that he is an aging, overweight milquetoast. The resulting derision causes stress between father and daughter, that may compel Kellegher to leave home against her family's wishes.
Judging from the script, Ireland is much more relaxed than America about the subject of sex. A group of young women sexually harass a younger male waiter, and frankly discuss their sexual adventures. The word "b*tch" is so frequently used that it can be taken as a compliment. When the unwed Kellegher becomes pregnant, her popularity actually increases. She is only ostracized when the father turns out not to be a sleek local stud, but a married man nearly old enough to be her grandfather. When Meaney finds out, his first reaction is very colorful, but unfortunately can't be repeated in print.
Another cultural difference is that the Irish seem to drink heavily. Meaney visits the pub nearly every night, and Kellegher gets plastered at a bar even though she is nine months pregnant. When her brother pukes in the kitchen sink (filled with dishes) after a binge, all father has to say is that he expects him to do the dishes afterwards.
I enjoyed all the petty squabbling and selfishness among the family members. Unlike "The Waltons", this is more likely how most larger families behave. "The Snapper" is a drama that succeeds even more as a comedy. (78/100)
The cheerful, noisy Curley family , living in a tight-knit neighborhood in Dublin, Ireland is hit with a bombshell in The Snapper when the oldest daug...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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