Wildfire (2020 film)

Wildfire
Directed byCathy Brady
Written byCathy Brady
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyCrystel Fournier
Edited byMatteo Bini
Music by
Production
companies
Release date
  • September 2020 (2020-09) (Toronto)[1]
CountriesIreland
United Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

Wildfire is a 2020 Irish drama thriller film directed by Cathy Brady.[2] It is about two reunited sisters (Nora-Jane Noone, Nika McGuigan) who discover secrets from their mother's past. It was acquired by Modern Films for distribution in the UK.[3] Martin McCann and Kate Dickie also star in supporting roles.

The film has received critical praise for its direction, writing, and performances, particularly that of the late McGuigan. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 72 out of 100, based on six critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[4] The film holds a 95% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.[5] The critical consensus on Rotten Tomatoes reads, "Anchored by the believable bond between its leads, Wildfire tells a heartfelt and realistic story of sisters peering into their family's past."[6] It was in the Great 8 Showcase at the Cannes Film Festival and debuted in the Discovery Showcase at the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival.[7][8] It won the IWC Schaffhausen Filmmaker Bursary Award at the London BFI Film Festival.[9] The award is worth £50k, for outstanding first or second time UK writer, director or writer/director presenting work at the BFI London Film Festival.[10]

McGuigan was posthumously honoured with the Lead Actress - Film award at the Irish Film & Television Academy (IFTA) Film & Drama Awards on for her final performance in this film.[11]

  1. ^ "Wildfire". tiff.net. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
  2. ^ Cole, Jake (17 September 2020). "Review: Wildfire Vibrantly Entwines Personal and Political Trauma". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  3. ^ Rosser, Michael (10 November 2020). "Modern Films acquires Cathy Brady's 'Wildfire' for UK (exclusive)". Screen. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  4. ^ "Wildfire". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  5. ^ Clarke, Stewart (10 May 2019). "First Look at Cathy Brady's 'Wildfire' Ahead of Cannes (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  6. ^ "Wildfire (2020)", Rotten Tomatoes, Fandango, retrieved 30 October 2021
  7. ^ "'Wildfire': Film Review | TIFF 2020 | Hollywood Reporter". www.hollywoodreporter.com. 17 September 2020. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  8. ^ "Four movies from Toronto, via Philly". Arkansas Online. 18 September 2020. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  9. ^ "Winners announced for Virtual LFF Audience Awards 2020". BFI. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  10. ^ ""Wildfire" Writer-Director Cathy Brady Wins £50,000 Bursary at BFI London Film Festival". womenandhollywood.com. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  11. ^ "Nika McGuigan posthumously honoured at IFTA Awards". RTÉ.ie. 4 July 2021.