TheWildGeese.Irish Cinema

'The Matchmaker' (1997)

Synopsis

Marcy (Janeane Garofalo) is an assistant to Senator John McGlory, who is having problems with a re-election campaign. Desperate for Irish votes, McGlory's Chief of Staff, Nick, sends Marcy to Ireland to trace McGlory's relatives or ancestors. Marcy arrives at the fictitious village of Ballinagra (set in the actual town of Roundstone, County Galway) when it is preparing for its annual Matchmaking Festival. A well-dressed, handsome and single young lady, she becomes the center of attention for two professional matchmakers, Dermot and Millie, as well as for bartender Sean.

 

I watched this mainly out of interest for its setting.  We live not far from Roundstone (where most of this movie was filmed), so it's always fun to see the places you know on "the big screen."  Truth be told, I'm not a big fan of Janeane Garofolo, so I wasn't expecting much.  However, I found this to be a fun, light-hearted film that is worth watching if you're in the mood for such.

The only trailer I could find on YouTube had embedding capabilities disabled, but you can jump over to watch it by clicking here.

 

 

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    jean kaniecki

    Haven't seen this one but looks like a nice, light hearted comedy and with gorgeous scenery

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      Sarah Nagle

      I'd forgotten about this movie. I think I must have watched it on video (remember video?) about a year after it came out. I thought the set up for the semi-subtle political joke near the end of the movie was close to perfect. I'm not sure if this movie says much about matchmaking in Ireland, but in an oblique sort of way it said a lot about American politics.

      Thanks for reminding me of it Ryan.