Magdalen

Director in Person
Directed by David Elio Malocco.
With Aisling Farrell, Frances Healy, Fran Brennan.
Ireland, 2002, digital video, color, 90 min.

Set in Dublin, this searing drama follows the lives of several prostitutes as they ply their trade on the city’s nighttime streets. Maggie (Farrell) has plans to emigrate to Australia, but her boyfriend runs off with their savings, leaving her alone and more desperate than ever. Dalena (Healy) is addicted to cocaine and has fallen foul of her brutal dealer. Unable to escape their lives, both women find a locus with Gizmo (Brennan), the moribund owner of the Magdalen nightclub, the film’s central backdrop. Director David Elio Malocco has crafted an unflinching and provocative look at Dublin’s criminal underbelly, a rare and powerful film.

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