Neil Jordan reported that he never lost more sleep over the making of a film than he did with this one; I can’t think of anything that helped me catch up on my sleep more. An epic about the Irish patriot (Liam Neeson) during the last years of his life (1916-’22), it clearly represents a lot of thought on Jordan’s part, yet it’s dramatic and cinematic sludge. With Julia Roberts, Aidan Quinn, Alan Rickman, and Stephen Rea. It won prizes for best film and best actor (Neeson) at the Venice film festival. (JR)