A One Mann’s Movies review of “The Lost Children of Tuam”. (2026, 3.5*, 12A).
The Lost Children of Tuam is a ‘small’ film with a big heart. With echoes of Philomena, Small Things Like These and Nickel Boys, it tells the story of institutional callousness in Ireland in the 20th century and the ongoing trauma that that has wrought.
One Mann’s Movies Rating:
Plot:
Catherine Corless (Monica Dolan) is doing a project for her Tuam History society on the former St Mary’s Children’s Home which operated in the County Galway town from 1925 to 1961. What she uncovers is set to rock the establishment and become national and international news.
Certification:
UK: 12A; US: NR. (From the BBFC website: “Upsetting scenes, discrimination references.”)
Talent:
Starring: Monica Dolan, Andrew Bennett, Ruth McCabe.
Directed by: Frank Berry.
Written by: Rebecca Lenkiewicz (with addition writing by Dan Barry and Frank Berry.)
Running Time: 1h 24m.
Review:
Positives:
- This is another stellar performance from the impressive stable of Monica Dolan. Catherine is a very shy and retiring lady – unwilling to even do a slide show for her small History group. Dolan perfectly expresses her feelings of terror in being pushed forcibly into the limelight. Dolan also ably depicts her fierce determination in gaining justice for the children affected.
- There are also some strong supporting performances, especially from Andrew Bennett as Catherine’s husband Aidan. (Although I was never quite sure what job he did: they seemed to be both farmers, but then he lost his job in “sales”?) Although they are little more than cameo appearances, the older actors who portrayed the now elderly children present with a wonderfully haunted look.
- The story is well-told, skipping forwards in time from where we start through to 2023, although the final actions in the story are shown via captions before the end titles.
- It was good to gain a glimpse into the ‘counter-argument’ from the nuns, via a dramatic pub meeting between Catherine/Aidan and Sister Joan (Deirdre Dunlea) and Sister Bridget (Ruth McCabe), representing the Bon Secours nuns who ran the home in its later years. They seem to be rather nonplussed that anything was ever wrong. Is this always the way with corrupt systems: the people within them see what they are doing as perfectly normal and valid? I was reminded here of the Israeli drone and missile pilots in NAZA, who seemed to have little remorse for the job that they did.
Negatives:
- I would have personally liked that pub exchange in the film, that I referenced above, to have gone on longer than it did. I wanted to hear presented more of their counter-arguments.
- The ending didn’t really pack the emotional punch that I think it deserved. We have a candlelit memorial service, as the camera pans around a circle of faces before getting to Aidan and Catherine. We then get what the Illustrious Mrs Movie Mann referred to as a “British Airways advert” shot, showing the concentric circles of people holding candles. Given how ‘real’ all the rest of the film felt, this was a note that felt more false and melodramatic. I would have preferred something more emotionally beefy, as I have described in the “Spoiler Section” below the trailer.
Summary Thoughts:
A film that stands up well alongside of similar ‘Irish Homes’ films like Philomena and Small Things Like These. It’s not a very happy film, but it is well done.
Where to watch?
Trailer:
The trailer for the film is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6A7hHXcO0k.
Spoiler Section
Don’t read past this point if you’ve not seen the movie.
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NO, SERIOUSLY!
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The film ends with captions detailing the events of recent years. This includes information about exhumations at the site of the old children’s home. A better end, imho, would have been to focus in on one of the elderly parents who were desperately looking for information about the children snatched off them after birth and providing closure on that heartache via DNA testing. This surely happened in real life and would have provided more of an emotional tug at the film’s end.
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