The Siege of Jadotville (film)

{{about|the 2016 movie|the event on which the movie is based|Siege of Jadotville}}

{{Infobox film

| name = The Siege of Jadotville

| image = Siege of Jadotville Netflix poster.jpg

| caption = Netflix release poster

| director = Richie Smyth

| producer = {{Plainlist|

Kevin Brodbin
Alan Moloney
Ruth Coady
Johanna Hogan
Justin Moore-Lewy

}}

| writer = Kevin Brodbin

| starring = {{Plainlist|

}}

| cinematography = Nikolaus Summerer

| editing = Alex Mackie

| music = Joseph Trapanese

| distributor = Netflix

| released = {{Film date|df=yes|2016|7|10|Galway Film Festival|2016|9|19|Ireland|2016|10|7|Worldwide}}

| runtime = 108 minutes

| country = Ireland
South Africa

| language = English{{cite web |title=THE SIEGE OF JADOTVILLE |url=https://bbfc.co.uk/releases/siege-jadotville-vod |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161214024958/http://www.bbfc.co.uk/releases/siege-jadotville-vod |url-status=dead |archive-date=14 December 2016 |website=British Board of Film Classification}}

| budget =

}}

The Siege of Jadotville is a 2016 action-war film directed by Richie Smyth{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3922798/ | title= The Siege of Jadotville (2016)| website= IMDb | accessdate= 11 September 2016}} and written by Kevin Brodbin. An Irish-South African production, the film is based on Declan Power's book, The Siege at Jadotville: The Irish Army's Forgotten Battle (2005), about an Irish Army unit's role in the titular Siege of Jadotville during the United Nations Operation in the Congo in September 1961,{{cite web |url= http://www.galwayfilmfleadh.com/index.php/project/the-siege-of-jadotville/ |website= Galwayfilmfleadh.com |accessdate= 11 September 2016 |title= 28th Galway Film Fleadh - July 2016 - The Siege of Jadotville |archive-date= 23 November 2017 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171123180253/http://www.galwayfilmfleadh.com/index.php/project/the-siege-of-jadotville/ |url-status= dead }} part of the Congo Crisis that stretched from 1960 to 1965.

First screened at the 2016 Galway Film Festival,{{cite news|url= http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/movies/movie-news/jamie-dornans-latest-film-wins-standing-ovation-at-galway-film-fleadh-34873749.html | newspaper= Irish Independent | date= 11 July 2016 | title= Jamie Dornan's latest film wins standing ovation at Galway Film Fleadh }} the film received a limited cinema distribution in Ireland in September 2016.{{cite news|url= http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/film/the-siege-of-jadotville-to-receive-limited-cinema-release-1.2788327 | newspaper= Irish Times |date= 12 September 2016 | title= 'The Siege of Jadotville' to receive limited cinema release |accessdate= 15 September 2016 }} It had simultaneous worldwide distribution on Netflix and in a number of US iPic Theaters during October 2016.{{cite web|url= https://www.rte.ie/entertainment/2016/0909/815485-siege-of-jadotville/ | title= First trailer of Siege of Jadotville is nail-biting| website= RTÉ| accessdate= 11 September 2016|date= 10 September 2016 }}{{cite news|url= https://variety.com/2016/film/news/netflix-ipic-1201879058/ | work= Variety | title= National Association of Theatre Owners Chief Sounds Alarm Over Netflix Deal With iPic |date= 5 October 2016 |accessdate= 6 October 2016 |quote= "[..] iPic [..has..] a theatrical foothold on 15 U.S. locations. That will be particularly important for Netflix films that need some kind of theatrical run to qualify for awards. IPic will release the war thriller "The Siege of Jadotville," starring Jamie Dornan ("Fifty Shades of Grey"), on Oct. 7"}} It won three Irish Film & Television Awards, including Best Director.

Plot

The film opens with the execution of Congolese Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba and the outbreak of civil war. As the mineral rich State of Katanga secedes under the leadership of Moise Tshombe, United Nations Secretary General Dag Hammarskjöld assigns Conor Cruise O'Brien to head up a UN peacekeeping mission. Privately, Hammarskjöld tells O'Brien that the Katanga crisis could potentially trigger World War III and orders the Irish diplomat to take offensive action.

Meanwhile, Irish Army Commandant Pat Quinlan commands an infantry company of Irish peacekeepers who arrive at the UN compound near Jadotville. After examining the compound, Quinlan decides that it is wide open to attack and orders his men to dig trenches and defensive fighting positions.

While buying food in the nearby town, Quinlan meets French mercenary Rene Faulques, who has been hired by the mining companies allied to Tshombe's government. Afterwards, he visits the estate of a Belgian colonist, Madam LaFongagne, who tells him that Jadotville contains the world's richest uranium deposits.

Meanwhile, O'Brien orders UN forces to launch an attack against government buildings held by the Katangese in Elizabethville. While Indian peacekeepers are attempting to seize the city's radio station, 30 unarmed Katangese radio operators and employees are killed by gunfire and grenades. O'Brien orders the incident to be swept under the rug.

In retaliation, Faulques receives orders to attack Jadotville. Katangese forces and mercenaries under Faulques' command attack and besiege the Irish. During a brief ceasefire, Faulques vainly demands Quinlan's surrender.

Quinlan refuses, and his company is attacked repeatedly in separate waves by the Katangese and mercenary forces. They kill a total of 300 enemy soldiers, and wound 1,000 enemy soldiers, with zero deaths and only 16 wounded for the Irish. Irish, Swedish and Indian UN peacekeepers attempt to reinforce "A" Company but are repelled by separatists. An effort to supply water and evacuate the wounded troops by helicopter fails as separatists shoot down the helicopter.

After numerous extended attack waves, the Irish company is forced to surrender to Faulques's troops after running out of ammunition, food, and drinking water. They are held in a Katangese prison for about a month, then are freed in a prisoner exchange deal and allowed to go home. After arriving home, Quinlan is informed by General McEntee that "A" Company's surrender causes shame to the UN and the higher ups want to bury the truth of the siege for political reasons. Only in 2005 did a full review of the siege clear the soldiers' reputations.

Selected cast

{{Cast listing|

Jamie Dornan as Patrick Quinlan
Emmanuelle Seigner as Madame LaFontagne
Jason O'Mara as Jack Prendergast
Mikael Persbrandt as Dag Hammarskjöld
Mark Strong as Conor Cruise O'Brien
Michael McElhatton as General McEntee
Danny Sapani as Moise Tshombe
Sam Keeley as Billy (Sniper) Ready
Ronan Raftery as John Gorman
Mike Noble as Charles Cooley
Charlie Kelly as Walter Hegarty
Conor MacNeill as Radio operator
Fionn O'Shea as William Reidy
Conor Quinlan as Patrick Joyce
Jordan Mifsud as John Donnelly

}}

In addition, Guillaume Canet portrays Rene Faulques, commander of the Katangese attacking force at Jadotville.

Production

The film is based on Declan Power's non-fiction book, The Siege at Jadotville: The Irish Army's Forgotten Battle (2005).{{cite web|url = https://time.com/4408017/the-siege-of-jadotville-the-true-story-netflix-film/ | publisher = Time Magazine | title = The True Story of the Heroic Battle That Inspired the New Netflix Film The Siege of Jadotville | date = 27 July 2016 | quote = "[...] author and military expert Declan Power, on whose book, Siege at Jadotville, the new movie is based."}}{{cite web|url = http://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/people/film-siege-of-jadotville-to-reveal-heroism-of-irish-troops-1.1891868 | publisher = Irish Times | title = Film 'Siege of Jadotville' to reveal heroism of Irish troops | date = 9 August 2014 | quote = "[...] military writer Declan Power – on whose book, The Siege of Jadotville, the film will be based" }} It covers the Siege of Jadotville, a conflict involving Irish Army UN Peacekeepers and Katangese forces during the Congo Crisis in September 1961.

The film was produced by an Irish production company, Parallel Films, for Netflix.{{cite web|url = http://www.iftn.ie/news/?act1=record&aid=73&rid=4287434&tpl=archnews&force=1 | publisher = Irish Film & Television Network | website = iftn.ie | title = Parallel Films' "The Siege of Jadotville" to Star Jamie Dornan | date = 6 August 2014 | accessdate = 7 November 2021 }} Described as an "Irish/South African co-production", some of the cast were put through a training camp in South Africa before filming. "There's nothing worse than watching actors acting like they're in an action movie, pretending to run upstairs with guns and look serious," said director Ritchie Smythe. "The best way to get them to do that realistically is just to train them to be soldiers, so I did."{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/on-demand/2016/10/07/i-really-didnt-want-to-see-jamie-dornan-naked-the-siege-of-jadot/|title='I really didn't want to see Jamie Dornan naked': The Siege of Jadotville's director on filming Ireland's secret war|first=Tristram Fane|last= Saunders|date=7 October 2016|newspaper=The Telegraph}} Filming occurred at locations in South Africa and in Ireland during 2015.{{cite web|url = http://www.iftn.ie/news/?act1=record&only=1&aid=73&rid=4289700&tpl=archnews&force=1 | publisher = Irish Film & Television Network | website = iftn.ie | title = Scriptwriter Kevin Brodbin on writing 'The Siege of Jadotville' | date = 23 September 2016 | accessdate = 7 November 2021 }}{{cite web|url = https://www.irishpost.com/entertainment/siege-jadotville-seven-things-need-know-netflixs-new-irish-war-film-based-mind-blowing-true-events-100834| publisher = Irish Post | website = irishpost.com | title = The Siege of Jadotville | date = 13 September 2016 | accessdate = 7 November 2021 }}

Actor Jamie Dornan said the real veterans "didn't get the recognition they deserved. In fact the opposite. They got that term Jadotville Jacks. They have had to live with that and they appreciate any light that can be shone on their heroics."{{cite news|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/film/the-siege-of-jadotville-how-ireland-almost-had-its-own-alamo-1.2801863|title=The Siege of Jadotville: How Ireland almost had its own Alamo|first=Donald|last=Clarke|date=19 September 2016|newspaper=Irish Times}}

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, as of 2022, the film had an approval rating of 64% based on 11 reviews.{{cite web|title=The Siege of Jadotville| website= Rotten Tomatoes |url= https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_siege_of_jadotville/ |access-date=4 February 2022 | url-status=live | archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20220204064711/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_siege_of_jadotville | archivedate = 4 February 2022 }}

Neil Genzlinger of The New York Times called it "a gripping drama".{{cite news |url= https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/02/movies/the-siege-of-jadotville-on-netflix-rediscovers-a-faded-footnote.html?_r=0 |title= 'The Siege of Jadotville' on Netflix Rediscovers a Faded Footnote |first= Neil |last= Genzlinger |date=28 September 2016|newspaper=New York Times}} Keith Uhlich of The Hollywood Reporter described the battlefield scenes as an "impressive spectacle", but said that the non-battle scenes were less so, and the conclusions "too rushed".{{cite web | date = 6 October 2016 |first=Keith|last=Uhlich| work= The Hollywood Reporter | title = 'The Siege of Jadotville': TV Review |url = http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/siege-jadotville-tv-review-935923 }} Robert Abele of the Los Angeles Times rated the film 50%, describing it as: "A scrappy war flick with a fair amount of combat suspense but a whole lot of clichéd dialogue".{{cite news |last= Abele |first= Robert|date=6 October 2016|work= Los Angeles Times |title=Review: Forgotten battle told in 'The Siege of Jadotville'| url= http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-mini-siege-jadotville-review-20161001-snap-story.html }}

In an opinion piece published on livemint.com in April 2021, Swapna Kona Nayudu noted issues with how the role of Indian forces was represented in the movie, stating that while "Indians and the Congolese are shown supporting Irish and French forces [...] the truth was the other way around".{{cite web|url = https://www.livemint.com/opinion/columns/indias-under-appreciated-role-as-sword-arm-of-the-un-11619546965882.html | title = India's under-appreciated role as sword arm of the UN | website = livemint.com | date = 28 April 2021 }}

=Accolades=

class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable"
scope="col" \| Awards ! scope="col" \| Category ! scope="col" \| Recipients ! scope="col" \| Result
rowspan=7\|Irish Film & Television Awards{{Cite web\|url=http://www.ifta.ie/awards/nominees_2017/ \|title=IFTA FILM & DRAMA NOMINEES 2017 \|last= \|first= \|work=Irish Film and Television Academy \|date= \|accessdate=10 April 2017}} \| Best Film \| The Siege of Jadotville \| {{nom}}
Best Director \| Richie Smyth \| {{won}}
Best Script \| Kevin Brodbin \| {{nom}}
Best Actor \| Jamie Dornan \| {{nom}}
Best Supporting Actor \| Jason O'Mara \| {{won}}
Best Sound \| The Siege of Jadotville \| {{nom}}
VFX \| The Siege of Jadotville \| {{won}}

class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable"

scope="col" | Awards

! scope="col" | Category

! scope="col" | Recipients

! scope="col" | Result

rowspan=7|Irish Film & Television Awards{{Cite web|url=http://www.ifta.ie/awards/nominees_2017/ |title=IFTA FILM & DRAMA NOMINEES 2017 |last= |first= |work=Irish Film and Television Academy |date= |accessdate=10 April 2017}}

| Best Film

| The Siege of Jadotville

| {{nom}}

Best Director

| Richie Smyth

| {{won}}

Best Script

| Kevin Brodbin

| {{nom}}

Best Actor

| Jamie Dornan

| {{nom}}