The Image You Missed
2018
Action / Biography / Documentary / History / War

The Image You Missed
2018
Action / Biography / Documentary / History / War
Plot summary
An Irish filmmaker grapples with the legacy of his estranged father, the late documentarian Arthur MacCaig, through MacCaig's decades-spanning archive of the conflict in Northern Ireland. Drawing on over 30 years of unique and never-seen-before footage, 'The Image You Missed' is an experimental essay film that weaves together a history of the Northern Irish 'Troubles' with the story of a son's search for his father. In the process, the film creates a candid encounter between two filmmakers born into different political moments, revealing their contrasting experiences of Irish nationalism, the role of images in social struggle, and the competing claims of personal and political responsibility.
Director
Tech specs
720p.WEB 1080p.WEBMovie Reviews
A little scattered, but some fine moments
A collage of disconnection
I really enjoyed this film. It shows a disconnection between a father and son, a disconnection inherent in Ireland since it's colonisation by the British. A sense of Ireland's soul is refracted through these two filmmakers. A man and his son. A lot is left is unknown as much if not most things in life are more unknowable than any of us would probably care to admit. These are all random events lost in time that even framed as the grand narratives of times and nations will one day be forgotten and lost. Context removed like a father's abandoned films. They document occurrences, fragments of long lives we know nothing of. That's life. Reflective of Ireland and it's people.