A Prayer for the Dying (1987) on Netflix
Martin Fallon, an IRA bomber, quits after a roadside bomb kills school children instead of soldiers. In London, gangster Jack Meehan offers him one last killing; a priest sees it.
- Netflix3.2/5
- IMDb6.3/106,472 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes50%
Trailer
Plot summary
Martin Fallon sets a roadside bomb for two army vehicles, but a school bus passes and the bomb kills the children instead. He loses heart, leaves the movement and travels to London, intending never to kill again and hoping to leave the country. The IRA wants him back, since he knows too much. A contact brings him an offer from Jack Meehan, a gangster who works as a funeral director, and his brother Billy: one more killing, on a rival, in exchange for money, a passport and a passage to America. Fallon takes the job. A Catholic priest, Father Michael Da Costa, witnesses the killing, and Jack learns there is a witness.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about A Prayer for the Dying (1987)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- A Prayer for the Dying was due to open the London Film Festival on 11 November 1987, but the screening was pulled following the IRA's Remembrance Day bombing in Enniskillen on 8 November.
- Franc Roddam was set to direct the adaptation but left during pre-production over creative differences with producer Peter Snell; Alan Bates said Roddam wanted to make an Irish "Rambo", while Snell wanted far less violence and far more suspense.
- Director Mike Hodges said he delivered his cut to Goldwyn in March and the studio, without consulting him, re-edited the film and replaced its musical score; he tried to remove his name, calling the result "a piece of schlock for the American market".
- Composer John Scott, who had scored Inseminoid, wrote the music for the film but was fired over creative differences with the producers, who brought in Bill Conti to finish the score.
- A 1970s film version of Jack Higgins' novel was planned to shoot in Leeds, the city where the book is set, starring Lee Marvin and directed and written by Edward Dmytryk; photos of the two men scouting Leeds locations appear in Tony Earnshaw's book Made in Yorkshire.
- While preparing for his part in the film, star Mickey Rourke met some members of the IRA as part of his research for the character.
- Director Mike Hodges wanted a rough, working-class priest rather than the sanctimonious screen priests played by Barry Fitzgerald or Bing Crosby, so he cast Bob Hoskins as the priest.
- Star Mickey Rourke was paid £1 million for the film, a fee that was part of the production's play or pay deal.
