Quartile rating: 7/10 · 1 rating
In 1985, while working as a coal merchant to support his family, Bill Furlong discovers disturbing secrets kept by the local convent and uncovers truths of his own; forcing him to confront his past and the complicit silence of a small Irish town controlled by the Catholic Church.
Small Things Like These is a quietly powerful Irish drama anchored by Cillian Murphy's restrained, nuanced performance as Bill Furlong — arguably the film's greatest asset and a clear outlier in quality. The plot faithfully adapts Claire Keegan's novella, tracing the Magdalene laundries scandal through an intimate, domestic lens rather than a sweeping indictment, which gives it moral weight but also a narrow emotional range. Cinematography is competent and atmospherically muted — the wintry Irish palette suits the material but rarely transcends functional. Novelty is moderate: the Magdalene laundries subject has been visited before (Philomena, The Magdalene Sisters), and while Keegan's personal, small-scale approach is distinctive, it doesn't radically reframe the territory. The ending is understated and morally honest, resisting melodrama, though some may find its quietness anticlimactic given the gravity of the subject.