Generally speaking, Irish cultural stories and ‘mythology’ get bastardized when represented in creative projects produced by overseas interests.
The trailer dates from 2005 and refers to a film called ‘Finn mac Cool’ (Ouch! Brutal anglicization of the name and not a good start for cultural authenticity). It is, in fact, a promotional piece for a film that was never actually made. This happens sometimes when a movie’s being proposed and talked-up, but the producers haven’t been able to raise the funding to complete it.
Either way, though, you have to give the producers credit for using Irish actors (or at least someone who can successfully put on an Irish accent – not looking at you, Tom Cruise and Christopher Walken!)
The ‘trailer’ is very much a product of its time and reflects the difficulty in adapting an Irish cultural narrative for an international audience. It can be done of course, but to have any long-term resonance or credibility beyond the initial marketing hype/push, it really needs to stay true to the cultural origin and the source material. For that reason, when producers are looking at adapting a ‘mythological’ story, they really have to decide early on which way they’re going to jump. This was very much something I came up against when I was providing cultural/technical advice for one of my own books being adapted by Hollywood.
The approach used in the promotional trailer, very much reflects an English or American person’s interpretation of what such a film should look like (as opposed to how a native Irish person might view/ produce it). The ‘trailer’ has some pretty dodgy bits that I’ve actually grown fond of (the pirouette deaths, Ming the Merciless as Goll mac Morna – from Dublin apparently, given the accent, the dodgy giant etc.) and, over the years, I’ve increasingly come to respect the producers for trying to make a Fenian narrative-based movie at a time when getting such funding really was an uphill battle.
I’m pretty sure a screen production of an ‘Irish mythology’ story will eventually become a reality but it’ll be interesting to see whether it’s a culturally resonant Irish version or an American Celtic Fantasy version. I guess time will tell.
Meanwhile, have a look at the trailer HERE.