The animated film 'The Secret of Kells' is great and well worth a watch. Far more accessible/relatable to modern audiences than this historical Bible that was dug up in a field in Kells. I'm glad it got a mention but the other guy is right -- the link should have been to the digitized book.
Contrary to everyone I think it was pretty mediocre. The significance of the book is barely covered and the contents of it are not mentioned at all. The story itself is dancing around the “message of the book” and how it prevails over everything (see the allegory with the abbey’s wall) but somehow they just never say it’s the four Gospels of the New Testament which are the most important texts of Christianity. If you don’t know what the Book of Kells _really is_ then what’s left from the film itself? Not so much just a generic fantasy story.
Yes. As someone who practices Western calligraphy, I expected a lot more about the book from the movie. It was mostly style kind of fable with the book as a prop.
I thoroughly enjoyed the game, but you may enjoy it even more if you're quite into western calligraphy. The characters "speak" in different lettering based on their education, profession, etc.
I took it to describe a more expansive history of Irish spirituality, how neopaganism is recovering the legends and traditions that Irish diaspora took with them to the rest of the world, or perhaps were forgotten across generations. How Ireland emerges as a post-Christian society, but remains embattled with culture wars and difficult relations with the UK.
The Gaeltacht today is not unlike that little monastic fortress at Kells.
One thing I like about The Secret of Kells is some of a meta-joke: since the plot takes place in the Middle Ages, and perspective was not yet in fashion, there's no perspective at all in this movie. It's very in your face (just like the Wes Anderson's lateral tracking shots), but just as charming.
Add Wolfwalkers to the list. It probably would have won the academy award for Best Animated Feature if that category wasn't a total joke.
(It's a joke category because all Academy members get to vote. There's no requirement that they have seen all the nominees, or that they have seen any of them.
A few years ago some animation trade magazine (I don't remember which one) surveyed Academy members after a year where a movie that most animation professionals thought would easily win lost to a movie they thought was good but clearly not as good.
What they found was that a significant fraction of voters don't watch animation, considering it to be just for kids. If they have young kids they vote for whatever movie the kids watched over and over. If they didn't have young kids they'd ask their young nieces or nephews or grandkids what cartoon they liked that year and vote for it. Or they would vote for the one they remembered seeing ads for).
The others in the Irish mythology series are really great too - Song of the Sea is my favourite. Great to watch with kids, but also can be enjoyed with no embarrassment by adults!
All three movies in the trilogy are absolute masterpieces.
Ireland is an interesting land. It’s easy to believe in magic after living here among the fairies and the little people for a couple years. They host the best parties.
I watched it for the first time a few hours ago, and did a Wikipedia dive about the Book of Kells. Flip over to HN and see this thread; what a weird convergence.
