Imdb Ranking 7.8
We are marching because ever since the partition of lreland Catholics here in the North have suffered discrimination in a Protestant dominated land.
Ivan Cooper (James Nesbitt), a member of Parliament, is trying to organize a protest in Derry, Northern Ireland on January 30, 1972 against the way the Catholics have been discriminated against in a protestant dominated land. The British army bans all parades, marches and protests because of the "adverse security situation in the province." There has been mass internment without trials. The British army says: "I would say to the leadership of the civil rights organization any responsibility for any violence which may take place must rest fairly and squarely on your shoulders."
The British troops sets up a perimeter and get ready. Cooper does his best to keep the march peaceful. The British troops in teaching the Catholics a lesson. Cooper starts talking with the troops about their right to march. Cooper talks to some IRA fellows and says that he wants to keep it peaceful but the IRA man says marching is not going to solve this thing.
Both sides plot strategy. The Catholics want to have a successful march and the British want to seize the leaders who they think are stirring up trouble. Cooper wants to reroute the march away from the British troops but some think he is selling out and the British don't seem to want to avoid a confrontation.
The movie looks at a Catholic boy who has a Protestant girlfriend. Ivan Cooper is a Protestant too, but he also has a Catholic girlfriend. Ivan feels if he can get this whole thing sorted out they could have a normal relationship, go to the movies ..
The marchers line up and are pretty excited. Singing "We Shall Overcome" they start the march. Cooper herds the crowd like sheep trying to keep them away from a confrontation. before you know it there are rocks, and masks, and gas and rubber bullets. Next thing you know some people were shot. Later when Bernadette Devlin was speaking the soldiers moved in and again began shooting people. Bodies were soon lying all over.
Afterwards the Brits scramble to justify their actions. They need to find a man with a weapon. Are they on the shooters on the barricade? There were three dead men on barricade but no weapons. The British army spokesman said that they were fired on first and yet no soldiers were hit.
At the hospital there are scores of screaming and mourning people. back at the army barracks the soldiers are questioned. They reported gunmen and bombs. The soldiers closed ranks as they answered their questioners.
In the end Ivan Cooper reports that twenty seven people were shot and thirteen were dead. they were innocent he said. He went on to say: "And, uh, I just want to say this to the British government: You know what you've just done, don't you? You've destroyed the Civil Rights movement. And you've given the IRA the biggest victory it will ever have. All over this city tonight young men, boys ... will be joining the IRA and you will reap a whilwind."
The movie was filmed in a documentary style and tried to keep an objective tone. It was very well done and did a real good job of showing the views of both sides, although the overly aggressive British troops were clearly portrayed as the villains in this incident.
