“The history presented in THE WIND THAT SHAKES THE BARLEY hardly feels like a closed book or a museum display. It is as alive and as troubling as anything on the evening news.” - A.O. Scott, New York Times
“A stirring lament for good human beings caught in the crossfire of history.” - Dave Calhoun, Time Out
Sunday, September 7, 2:00 p.m. & Saturday, September 13, 7:15 p.m. | Perennial humanist Ken Loach’s Palme d’Or winning THE WIND THAT SHAKES THE BARLEY finds brother pitted against brother during Ireland’s Civil War. In 1920s Ireland, Damien (OPPENHEIMER’s Cillian Murphy) and Teddy O’Donovan join the Irish Republican Army during the War of Independence to fight British forces. First united in their pursuit of freedom, they become divided when the struggle shifts from rebellion to conflict over the controversial peace treaty between the two countries. Against the backdrop of a deeply divided Ireland, Loach intimately explores the heartbreaking, personal cost of political revolution.
Awards & Nominations
Winner - Palme d’Or - Cannes Film Festival
Nominee - Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor (Cillian Murphy), Best Cinematography, British Independent Film Awards
Cinema of Resistance | September 1–28, 2025
In Cinema of Resistance, we present eight films that expose the lowest moments of humanity, both real and imagined: war, corruption, cowardice, authoritarianism, and then raise high displays of bravery from movements that changed the course of history and individuals that put themselves on the line for the greater good. Join the fight from your cinema seat.
The Film Center is ADA accessible. This presentation will be projected without open captions. The theater is hearing-loop equipped. For accessibility requests, please email filmcenter@saic.edu