These are the 20 best Irish movies you can watch at home right now

Rory Cashin

In the market for a great Irish movie this evening? Look no further!

Sometimes you just feel like watching an Irish movie, a home-grown product that shows off how great Irish cinema can be, and to that end, that is why we’ve created this list.

We’ve tried to stick to the movies that you won’t be able to catch on TV pretty regularly – which is why, say, The Snapper isn’t here – and we’ve also listed as many streaming services as possible.

However, you will see some of the entries are available on PVOD apps – Google Play, Sky Store, Rakuten, etc. – and on there you can rent the associated movies, usually for about €2.99.

Also, the movies are available on the platforms at the time of writing, but as with all platform libraries, they are subject to change. With all of that in mind, on with the list!

BROOKLYN

An Irish immigrant (Saoirse Ronan) lands in 1950s Brooklyn, where she quickly falls into a romance with a local (Emory Cohen). When her past catches up with her, however, she must choose between two countries and the lives that exist within. Available to watch on Google Play, Sky Store, and Rakuten.

CALM WITH HORSES

Douglas ‘Arm’ Armstrong (Cosmo Jarvis) has become the feared enforcer for the drug-dealing Devers family (headed by Barry Keoghan), whilst also trying to be a good father. Torn between these two families, Arm’s loyalties are tested when he is asked to kill for the first time. Available to watch on Netflix.

DATING AMBER

Two school friends (Fionn O’Shea and Lola Petticrew) decide to start a pretend straight relationship in an effort to fit in. Available to watch on Prime Video.

EXTRA ORDINARY

Rose (Maeve Higgins), a mostly sweet and lonely Irish driving instructor, must use her supernatural talents to save the daughter of Martin (Barry Ward), also mostly sweet and lonely, from a washed-up rock star (Will Forte) who is using her in a Satanic pact to reignite his fame. Available to watch on Netflix.

GLASSLAND

Set in Dublin, this movie tells the story of a young taxi driver (Jack Reynor) who gets tangled up in the world of human trafficking while trying to save his mother (Toni Collette) from drug addiction. Available to watch on Google Play, Sky Store, and Rakuten.

THE GUARD

An unorthodox Irish policeman (Brendan Gleeson) with a confrontational personality is partnered with an up-tight F.B.I. agent (Don Cheadle) to investigate an international drug-smuggling ring. Available to watch on Google Play, Sky Store, and Rakuten.

HANDSOME DEVIL

Ned (Fionn O’Shear) and Conor (Nicholas Galitzine) are forced to share a bedroom at their boarding school. The loner and the star athlete at this rugby-mad school form an unlikely friendship until it’s tested by the authorities. Available to watch on Netflix.

THE HOLE IN THE GROUND

A single mother (Seána Kerslake) living in the Irish countryside with her son begins to suspect he may not be her son at all, and fears his increasingly disturbing behaviour is linked to a mysterious sinkhole in the forest behind their house. Available to watch on Netflix.

HUNGER

Irish republican Bobby Sands (Michael Fassbender) leads the inmates of a Northern Irish prison in a hunger strike. Available to watch on Netflix.

IN BRUGES

Guilt-stricken after a job gone wrong, hitman Ray (Colin Farrell) and his partner (Brendan Gleeson) await orders from their ruthless boss (Ralph Fiennes) in Bruges, Belgium, the last place in the world Ray wants to be. Available to watch on Google Play, Sky Store, and Rakuten.

KATIE

This documentary follows Irish champion boxer Katie Taylor as she tries to rekindle her career after a year of setbacks. Available to watch on Netflix.

THE MAGDALENE SISTERS

Three young Irish women struggle to maintain their spirits while they endure dehumanising abuse as inmates of a Magdalene Sisters Asylum. Available to watch on Prime Video.

MICHAEL INSIDE

An 18-year-old man (Dafhyd Flynn) living in a Dublin housing estate with his grandfather (Lalor Roddy), is caught holding drugs for his friend’s older brother and is sentenced to 3 months in prison. Available to watch on Netflix.

THE SIEGE OF JADOTVILLE

Irish Commandant Pat Quinlan (Jamie Dornan) leads a stand off with troops against French and Belgian Mercenaries in the Congo during the early 1960s. Available to watch on Netflix.

SING STREET

A boy (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo) growing up in Dublin during the 1980s escapes his strained family life by starting a band to impress the mysterious girl (Lucy Boynton) he likes. Available to watch on Google Play, Sky Store, and Rakuten.

SONG OF THE SEA

Ben (David Rawle), a young Irish boy, and his little sister Saoirse (Lucy O’Connell), a girl who can turn into a seal, go on an adventure to free the fairies and save the spirit world. Available to watch on Prime Video.

WAKING NED DEVINE

When a lottery winner dies of shock, his fellow townsfolk – including Fionnula Flanagan and David Kelly – attempt to claim the money. Available to watch on Sky Store and Rakuten.

THE WIND THAT SHAKES THE BARLEY

Against the backdrop of the Irish War of Independence, two brothers (Cillian Murphy and Pádraic Delaney) fight a guerrilla war against British forces. Available to watch on Volta (only in Rep of Ireland).

WOLFWALKERS

A young apprentice hunter (Honor Kneafsey) and her father (Sean Bean) journey to Ireland to help wipe out the last wolf pack. But everything changes when she befriends a free-spirited girl (Eva Whittaker) from a mysterious tribe rumoured to transform into wolves by night. Available to watch on Apple TV+.

THE YOUNG OFFENDERS

Two teenage boys (Alex Murphy and Chris Walley) cycle 160km on stolen bikes pursued by police to find a missing bale of cocaine worth 7 million euro. Set around the real event of Ireland’s biggest cocaine seizure in 2007 of €440 million. Available to watch on Netflix.