Colm Bairéad’s “The Quiet Girl”

The Quiet Girl (2022)

An absolute powerhouse of quiet intensity that beautifully blends a terrific script, cinematography and music to achieve something truly special

This year has been extraordinary in terms of both debut features and child performances even just considering “The Quiet Girl(An Cailín Ciúin)” and “Aftersun”. Catherine Clinch is extraordinary as Cáit, a neglected girl in rural Ireland in 1981 who with the upcoming birth of her brother is sent to stay with distant relatives, Eibhlín Cinnsealach(Carrie Crowley) and her husband Seán (Andrew Bennett) on their dairy farm. The casting it pitch perfect. From each characters’ first line of dialogue, it feels as if you know and believe in them.

Based on Claire Keegan’s book “Foster”, Colm Bairéad’s screenplay manages to do so much in its light running time and is so well paced. Somehow the film speeds by without feeling rushed, even feeling contemplative and not far off the tone of the works of Yasujirō Ozu or Céline Sciamma.

Paired with the gorgeous, poetic cinematography, it doesn’t take long to be fully immersed into Cáit’s world and utterly invested in the lives of these people. Stephen Rennicks’ gentle soundtrack enhances without intruding and is quietly stirring. Also, the decision to predominantly keep the film in the Irish language adds another level of immersion in a film that already grabs hold of the viewer before even a line of dialogue is spoken.

It is a diamond of a film of understated power and an absolute must see.