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The Brylcream Boys tells the story of two prisoners of war who are incarcerated in the same prison camp in the Republic of Ireland during World War Two, and have fallen for the same girl, a local flame-haired beauty named Mattie Guerin (Jean Butler). There is an added complication that one of the prisoners is a Canadian airman, Miles Keogh (Bill Campbell) while the other suitor is a German officer, Count Rudolph Von Stegenbek (Angus McFadyen).
The film touches upon a little known part of Irish (and World War II) history. In the outbreak of war in 1939, the Republic of Ireland was determined to remain neutral. The country had independence (from Britain) for less than two decades and the leadership of both Ireland (De Valera) and the UK (Churchill) had been former adversaries in the battle for independence. The Republic had a small army with almost no ability to defend itself against attacks from sea or air. A declaration of support for the Allies would have meant that Allied (i.e. British) troops would have had to occupy Ireland in order to defend it against German attack - an prospect which had too much historical baggage for De Valera to contemplate. Most Irish supported the Allied cause and many fought in the British and (to a lesser extent) the US army during the war. De Valera was determined to preserve the appearance of neutrality throughout the war, even to the extent of sending the official condolences of the Irish government to the German embassy in 1945 on the death of Hitler.
Soldiers from both the Allied and Axis sides (mainly shot-down pilots, and some shipwrecked sailors) were imprisoned (in separate compounds) in the same military camp outside Dublin - in reality, many of the Allied pilots were allowed to return to duty by making their way (largely unhindered) to the border with Northern Ireland (only 50 miles away from the camp). Security in the camp itself was lax, since it was understood by all that breaches of the rules would only make things worse for other prisoners. It was also a fact that, if one was fated to be a prisoner-of-war, the camp was a pretty good place to sit out the war.
What a pity that the potential for an offbeat exploration of a little known aspect of WWII is completely wasted by this trite and cliché- ridden production. Almost every character in the film is a crudely drawn stereotype, from the well-meaning but stupid Irish soldiers guarding the camp, to the square-bashing, humourless Germans obsessed with discipline. Of course, Count Rudolph is a 'good' German; i.e. he despises the other Germans in the camp (and by implication, the Nazi cause). Miles Keogh is a gung-ho pilot who just wants to get back into action - he teams up with the British prisoners (absolutely unconvincing performances, to a man) to plan his escape.
The love interest arrives in the rather fetching shape of Mattie Guerin, who seems to hold both men in thrall merely by fluttering her eyelashes (perhaps because she is not capable of much else). Actually, that is not entirely true - this film was intended to be the breakthrough role for Butler. She had already achieved fame as the lead dancer (along with Michael Flatley) in Riverdance, a Celtic music and dance extravaganza. She gets a chance to dance in the film, too - but the sequence is so ineptly photographed that her dancing skills don't shine. Since her acting skills are not in evidence, I foresee a short movie career unless she can become the Esther Williams of Irish dancing, miraculously weaving dancing routines into every film. I'm not sure the world is ready for that!
Campbell and McFadyen don't fare much better, though the script is so bad, I doubt there was much either could do. McFadyen (who played Robert the Bruce in Braveheart) looks particularly uncomfortable throughout the film, as if he had realised too late what a turkey it would turn out to be. However, the worst performance is that of Gabriel Byrne (also a co-producer) who mugs and grins stupidly throughout the entire film. He seems to be imitating Barry Fitzgerald in The Quiet Man in every scene. There is a reason that movies like The Quiet Man isn't made any more, but at least John Ford knew how to invest his film with charm and whimsy. The Brylcream Boys possess neither - one might accept the crude national stereotypes if the film was at least entertaining. But it is not, and is simply an insult to filmgoers.
(c) Stockholm Film Review 1999
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