The Commitments: Youth, Music, and Authenticity in 1990s Ireland [Paperback]

Introduction: Beyond Text, Beyond Film: The Commitments as Event  Chapter 1: A Commitment to Dublin? From Transnational Co-Production to Locational Specificity  Chapter 2: Say It Loud, Im Black an Im Proud: Intersections of Race, Class, Gender and Youth on Screen and Soundtrack  Chapter: 3 Youth Culture and Music Scenes in 1980s and 1990s Dublin.  Chapter 4: Songs and Sonic Authenticity: Mediating Musical Performance  Conclusion: The Legacy of The Commitments

This book examines The Commitments (Parker, 1991) for the first time as a film first and foremost, rather than an adaptation of Roddy Doyles bestselling novel, and as a significant cultural event in 1990s Ireland.

This book examines The Commitments (Parker, 1991) for the first time as a film, rather than an adaptation of Roddy Doyles bestselling novel, and as a significant cultural event in 1990s Ireland.

A major hit in Ireland and around the world, the film depicts the short-lived attempts of an ensemble of young working-class Dubliners to achieve success as a soul covers band, playing the hits of Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, and others, on a mission to bring soul back to Dublin. Drawing upon interviews with key figures involved in the film and its music, including Roddy Doyle, Angeline Ball, and Bronagh Gallagher, as well as archival research of director Alan Parkers papers, the book explores questions of authenticity associated with youth, music, class, and culture, and assesses the films legacy for the Irish film industry, Irish music scenes, and Irish youth. It also examines the films status as a truly transnational production.

This concise, yet interdisciplinary case study will be of interest to studl£`