Hidden Agenda

1990

Action / Drama / Thriller

16
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Certified Fresh 86% · 21 reviews
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Upright 71% · 500 ratings
IMDb Rating 6.9/10 10 4955 5K

irish rebellion politics northern ireland cover-up torture terrorism

Plot summary

In Ireland, American lawyer Ingrid Jessner and her activist partner, Paul Sullivan, struggle to uncover atrocities committed by the British government against the Northern Irish during the "Troubles." But when Sullivan is assassinated in the streets, Jessner teams up with Peter Kerrigan, a British investigator acting against the will of his own government, and struggles to uncover a conspiracy that may even implicate one of Kerrigan's colleagues.

Director

Ken Loach Photo
Ken Loach

Top cast

Brian Cox Photo
Brian Cox as Kerrigan
Frances McDormand Photo
Frances McDormand as Ingrid Jessner
Brad Dourif Photo
Brad Dourif as Paul Sullivan
Michelle Fairley Photo
Michelle Fairley as Teresa Doyle
720p.BLU 1080p.BLU
813.25 MB
1280*720
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles
23.976 fps
1 hr 48 min
Seeds 4
1.65 GB
1920*1080
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles
23.976 fps
1 hr 48 min
Seeds 5

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by v_danilovic 8 / 10

Superb acting!!!

I admit it - I'm smitten with Frances McDormand. She makes every male lead she plays opposite better by her presence. Doubt that? Look at how she elevated Brad Pitt's game in "Burn After Reading."The rest of the acting and direction is noteworthy as well. Now about the writing.... Am I getting old, or is it really quite opaque?
Reviewed by michaelberanek275 8 / 10

Downbeat Loach thriller

The distinctly pedestrian and realist style to this little caper was quite refreshing as it avoided most clichés of the thriller genre like sexy protagonists and high energy gun battles etc etc to give something a little like a racy cigarette smoke-filled real-life documentary. The miry setting, in the midst of the sectarian wars of Ireland, and including within the tawdry bowels of the Royal Ulster Constabulary, also Republican bars, minor hotels, and humble households was most intriguing, but then the 'hidden agenda' plot panned away some distance from the psycho-realism onto a rather disappointing vein about incredulous or just uninteresting high level parliamentary dirty tricks, ho hum... Thatcher (of course), well not her exactly, anyway... It felt great in the main though, in the unique way the drama was directed, somewhat over the shoulder camera positions where the context is always in view, and conjuring easy naturalistic performances - with Cox doing a great turn as kind of big Yorkshire terrier. The story muddled its way along in a way that felt pretty convincing as a slice of real life in all its convolutions and routine failures of trust, up until the final segment which as I say pulled back I feel a little far, with its ambition to be a big Political thriller, somewhat betraying the best bit, the human narrative of the everyday fog of war and enduring terror that was no doubt an everyday reality for the citizens of northern Ireland.
Reviewed by barberoux 7 / 10

Good Political Movie

"Hidden Agenda" was an enjoyable political thriller. The story was a somewhat typical Irish against the bloody English set in the late 1980's. The strength of the movie was in the fine acting by Frances McDormand, as usual, Brian Cox and many others. The ending some may find unsatisfactory. It tends to be open ended. I thought it provided much speculation on what Frances McDormand would do. I also thought it to be true to life.

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