Fools of Fortune

For the silent film, see Fools of Fortune (1922 film).

Fools of Fortune is a 1990 Irish romantic drama film directed by Pat O'Connor and written by Michael Hirst based on the 1983 novel by Irish writer William Trevor. It depicts a Protestant family caught up in the conflict between the British Army and the IRA during the Irish War of Independence.^[2]

Fools of Fortune
Directed by	Pat O'Connor
Screenplay by	Michael Hirst
Based on	Fools of Fortune by William Trevor
Produced by	Sarah Radclyffe
Starring	Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio Iain Glen Julie Christie
Cinematography	Jerzy Zielinski
Edited by	Michael Bradsell
Music by	Hans Zimmer
Production companies	Channel Four Films PolyGram Working Title Films
Distributed by	Palace Pictures
Release date	22 June 1990 (1990-06-22)
Running time	109 minutes
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Budget	£2.5 million
Box office	USD$83,490[1]

Cast

• Iain Glen as Willie Quinton
  • Sean T. McClory as young Willie
• Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio as Marianne
• Julie Christie as Mrs. Quinton
• Catherine McFadden as Imelda
• Amy-Joyce Hastings (credited as Amy Hastings) as Geraldine Quinton
• Michael Kitchen as Mr. Quinton
• Hazel Flanagan as Deirdre Quinton
• Frankie McCafferty as Tim Paddy
• Niamh Cusack as Josephine
• John Kavanagh as Johnny Lacy

Production

It was filmed on location in Dublin, County Westmeath, Galway and at Ardmore Studios.

O'Connor recruited twice Oscar-nominated designer Judy Moorcroft to provide costumes for the film.

Release

The film went to VHS and Laserdisc, but has not yet appeared on DVD.

New York Times reviewer Vincent Canby described the film as "an ambitious mess, of interest only because of the chance to see [Julie] Christie, who becomes more and more tautly beautiful with the years, and [Mary Elizabeth] Mastrantonio, who is also beautiful and does an extremely credible upper-class English accent."^[3] The Washington Post described it as "a passionate, mystifyingly awkward bit of filmmaking".^[3]