Maron pictures

MARON PICTURES

Present

STRENGTH AND HONOUR

MARK MAHON

MICHAEL MADSEN VINNIE JONES PATRICK BERGIN

Running Time: 90 minutes – Rated 15A

Mariners Rest, Mariners View Avenue,

Passage West, Cork, IRELAND

Tel. +353 21 484 3550/Fax. +353 21 484 3500/Email: info@maronpictures.net

VINNIE JONES

PATRICK BERGIN

GAIL FITZPATRICK

OLANN KELLEHER

ALAN ALMOND, B.S.C.

ELEANOR WOOD

KATE COGGINS

EIMER NI MHAOLDOMHNAIGH

ILAN ESHKERI

GOHL/MCLAUGHLIN

HOWARD GIBBINS

CARMEL O’CONNOR

Sean Kelleher			Michael Madsen
Smasher O’Driscoll			Vinnie Jones
Papa Boss			Patrick Bergin
Denis O’Leary			Richard Chamberlain
Chaser McGrath			Michael Rawley
Mammy McGrath			Gail Fitzpatrick
Michael Kelleher			Luke Whelton
Barry Lacey			Myles Horgan
Chosky Boss			Finbar Furey
Coco McGrath			Sheridan Mahon
Baby McGrath			Krystal Mahon
Fixer Ward			Michael Galvin
Michael Murphy			Joe O’Gorman
Mary Murphy			Gerry McLoughlin
Wheeler Mccoy			Pat Shortt
Ciara Lacey			Lesley Conroy
Dr. Sheridan			Alf McCarthy
Neiler			Kevin McCormack
Traveller #1			Paul Valentine
Traveller #2			Liam Heffernan
Traveller #3			Paul Creighton
Priest			Fr. John Galvin
Barman			David Keelan
Cathal Murphy			James Browne
Postman			Pascal Scott
Shannon			Norma Sheahan
Waitress			Hilary O’Shaughnessy
Desmond Curran			Conor Dwane
District Nurse			Debbie Byrne
Dr. McCarthy			Cora Fenton
Frankie O’Neill			Michael Collins
Hopper O’Shea			Brendan Condron
James O’Shea			Denis Tuohy
Journalist			Michelle Forde
Musher			Jimmy Upton
Nurse – Kids ward			Fiona Condon
Nurse #2 – ICU			Mary Mooney
Surgeon			Neil Prendeville
Newsreader			Mark Mahon

The film stars Michael Madsen (RESERVOIR DOGS, KILL BILL: VOLUME 1), Vinnie Jones (SNATCH, X-MEN: THE LAST STAND), Patrick Bergin (SLEEPING WITH THE ENEMY, PATRIOT GAMES) and Richard Chamberlain (“The Thorn Birds,” “Shogun”).

Screenwriter Mark Mahon makes his directorial debut with a film that questions people’s prejudices against other communities and how fate can play a part in one’s life, no matter how much you try to change it.

ABOUT THE FILM

"I've played a lot of dangerous, nefarious guys over the years, and I guess I liked the idea of playing someone with heart. I want to finally play a guy who rides off into the sunset with the girl," says Michael Madsen, who brings Sean Kelleher’s character to life in Maron Pictures’ STRENGTH AND HONOUR. As a man whose life falls apart after the death of his wife, Kelleher’s showdown with fate is a perfect match for the intense and engaging well-known “tough guy,” in a rare performance displaying his sensitive side.

For director Mark Mahon, who also wrote and produced STRENGTH AND HONOUR, it was the culmination of a lifelong dream. “Despite winning an award in Hollywood a couple of years ago for one of my other projects (FREEDOM WITHIN THE HEART), nobody would give me a chance, so as a writer/director I was forced to become a producer,” says Mark.

Mahon won the coveted Hollywood ‘Best Screenplay Unproduced’ Award in 2005 at the International Action on Film Ceremony in Los Angeles and was courted by some of the major U.S. studios for a spell. One point that became very evident was that the making of FREEDOM WITHIN THE HEART was going to be expensive and the studios had reservations about the costs. Mahon knew that the only way he could make things happen was to take charge himself, so he set up his own production company, Maron Pictures.

“I discussed the project with my solicitor, friend and now Executive Producer, Olann Kelleher, as to how we could get this project off the ground.” The problem that then presented itself was how they would raise the twenty million for his first production. “Prior to setting up Maron Pictures I was developing property, where I would buy sites, get planning and build the properties. I reckoned that film producing is effectively the same thing, except instead of dealing with sites, I would be dealing with scripts,” says Mahon. After exhausting all possibilities, Mark and Olann decided with proper investigation and planning that they could make a movie for approximately half of this figure and so the writer developed a script with the budget constraints in mind. In December 2005, he started writing STRENGTH AND HONOUR. He knew initially what the underlining theme was going to be, that of overcoming the odds, a theme which has run through his own life.

After meeting Michael Madsen, Mark had a chat with him about his idea for the film. Michael wanted to see the script. After completing its ninth draft, Mark personally dropped it off to Madsen’s manager. It didn’t take long for Michael to ring the Irishman and tell him that he loved the screenplay and wanted to do it.

At first glance, the film seems to revolve around the world of boxing in Ireland but digging deeper, the feel-good movie turns into a magical experience where the audience will be left with a sense of deep satisfaction. In the film, Madsen plays Sean Kelleher, an Irish-American forced to break the last promise he made to his dying wife in order to save their son’s life. His decision to return to boxing and fight for what he knows is right is a powerful story of good overcoming all. “I was lucky to work with Quentin Tarantino in my early days, and I say the same about Mark today,” says Madsen. “So much of any picture is down to the writing, and I see in Mark the kind of talent for telling a story that's really rare to find.”

What most intrigued Madsen – in addition to playing the good guy – was his character’s internal battle with himself. It is not just about fighting the devil incarnate in Smasher O’Driscoll (Vinnie Jones), but the demon that plagues his own soul.

Madsen’s fascination with the role goes beyond his love of boxing to the character’s dramatic change of life. He knew that the role was going to present certain physical challenges and started an intense training program twelve weeks before coming to Ireland. “I love this part because it is different from the bad guy roles that people have come to associate me with. It’s quite a shot for me to play the other side of the coin, and be the good guy in the white hat for once,” says Madsen.

Besides the physical demands, another taxing order was going to be the accent for the Irish-American character. For the perfectionist that he is, Madsen worked with a dialect coach before he even got on the plane to the Emerald Isle, but soon found that you can’t beat being on the ground. Madsen adds, “I learned a lot more about it from hanging out with the local people than I did from any books or anything of that nature. You pick it up pretty fast just being there, you know! Everybody talks a certain way and pretty soon, you start talking the same way and it just becomes part of your speech pattern after a while. And besides, I'm supposed to be Irish American, which is what John Wayne was when he did THE QUIET MAN. It was a similar story about someone who kills someone in the boxing ring and, later on, they have to come back and face the realities."

“Mike has played some great parts in his career, but I always felt that he had more to give than his usual typecast,” says Mahon. “In the environment where Sean would eventually end up, the actor playing Sean had to be a tough guy physically but with a gentle, caring soul underneath the surface. Actors who can meet these requirements are few and far between.”

Just as every fighter has a trainer, so does Sean. Mahon couldn’t believe his luck when he was waiting outside an office in a major studio for a meeting. Sitting across from him was Richard Chamberlain. He recognized the star immediately, as his grandmother was a big fan of the hit mini-series “The Thorn Birds,” “Shogun” and her favourite movie, KING SOLOMON’S MINES. The two had a pleasant conversation and Mahon explained that he was making his first film in Ireland later that autumn. He gave Mr. Chamberlain his card and they parted company. Days later, Mahon received an email from Mr. Chamberlain’s manager saying that Richard loved the outline of story, which Mark had told him about and was there any possibility that he could read the script.

“I remember thinking after the phone call that the only character that I could see him playing was the Denis O’ Leary character (Madsen’s boxing coach) but he was written as a ‘small, balding man in mid-seventies.’ A quick second later, the character took on a new life as ‘DENIS O'LEARY, late fifties, slim and good-looking for his age,’ says Mahon. Despite being retired for several years and having looked for a script that he would make a comeback with, Chamberlain seized the opportunity. “It was always going to take a special script to tempt me back to work again. When I read STRENGTH AND HONOR I knew straight away it was the right one for me,” says Richard. “I think the very human nature of the script is what attracted me to it in the first place.”

With the boxer and coach taken care of, Mahon turned his attention to casting Smasher O’Driscoll, Sean’s nemesis. The director found himself with a new dilemma. With the underground world of bare-knuckle fighting being as tough as what it is, who could he possibly get as an antagonist, especially when the character would have to make the 6’2” Madsen appear intimidated? Mickey Rourke’s name was mentioned but Mahon knew that visually if wouldn’t work with Rourke standing at 5’ 11.” Always being a great fan of Vinnie Jones and reckoning that his talents as an actor were underappreciated, Mahon sent the script to Mr. Jones. A week later, Vinnie signed up.

“Smasher O Driscoll’s brilliant for me. He’s a character who really takes over when you put the gear on…,” says Vinnie. Part of his deal with Mahon though, was the British bad-boy had to play an Irish traveller accent, as the director knew that he had it in him. Vinnie adds, “Brad Pitt used a special voice coach to prepare for his part as a traveller in the film SNATCH. He suggested that I use the same person. I already knew a few travellers and also enlisted their help.” On set, Mahon’s training as an actor really came into being, as he would personally go over lines with Vinnie before delivery. “I trained solidly for six weeks for this role and after seeing it, it was all worth it,” says Jones. “To me, this is one of the best fight movies ever made.” Mahon adds, “Vinnie got so into the character, one night we went out for a few drinks and he started doing his traveller accent in a bar. Minutes later, the manager came up and asked us to leave. When I asked why, he said that he had trouble in his establishment before with travellers and wasn’t going to have it a second time. We both couldn’t stop laughing and when we explained who Vinnie was, he nearly died of embarrassment.”

Looking for a strong female lead, the director scoured Ireland in open auditions to cast ‘Mammy.’ “For me, every actor in every movie has a scene that is theirs. Mammy’s scene is when she confronts the travellers in her camp and I knew that if an actor could nail that, they would nail the ‘Mammy’ character. Gail Fitzpatrick auditioned for me and I asked her to do the scene. I gave her some notes and the second time, Mammy came to life in front of me. I got up, shook her hand and told her that I had met Mammy in the flesh,” says Mahon. Gail has over eleven years of experience as an actor and loved the whole experience. “I have worked with writer/directors, producer/directors, writer/producers, etc. many times before. But never have I experienced one who could do all three (write, produce and direct) with the same level of skill and passion. I was fortunate to be part of a rare and unique experience,” says Fitzpatrick.

For the key supporting roles of ‘Papa Boss’ and ‘Chaser McGrath,’ the filmmaker turned to one veteran actor and one newcomer: Patrick Bergin and Michael Rawley.

“Patrick read the script and loved the part. Less than 48 hours later Mahon’s phone rang with Mr. Bergin on the phone. A cool voice said to him, “I heard that you’re looking for a Papa Boss,” recalls Mark. “I couldn’t believe it, as I was a big fan of SLEEPING WITH THE ENEMY. I immediately jumped on a plane to Patrick’s summer house in Brighton and Papa Boss was cast.”

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION

Very conscious that STRENGTH AND HONOUR was his directorial debut, Mahon storyboarded the entire script, something which is unheard of in the industry. “In reality, I did it so there would be no miscommunication with what I was trying to achieve visually. Even my opening shot could have proved difficult, as the inside of the ring is well lit and darkness magically touches the ropes but remains outside, so I wanted the camera to crane up, over and around the ring. The hidden message in the shot is that there is a fine line between good and evil, right and wrong, darkness and light. By handing storyboards to each department head, everybody knew what I wanted to achieve.”

It fell to Production Designer Eleanor Wood to turn Mahon’s vision into a reality. Wood loved the idea of creating the travellers world. “She was amazing,” says Mahon. “When we found the gym in Passage, Cork, it was a derelict building. Afterwards I realized that Ele must have been delighted, as she was effectively given a clean canvass. The first time that we turned up on the set after she was finished, every one of the cast and crew just stopped and stared in amazement.”

Wood and her team utilized everything to its fullest capacity like the warehouse, which saw the opening of the ‘Puck Fight.’ The building was to hold over six hundred extras, with four fights going off simultaneously.

Financing for the movie was raised privately, with the assistance of Ireland’s S481 tax incentive. The film was shot on location in Cork in Southern Ireland over seven weeks in the autumn of 2006. Mahon says that making his film debut in his hometown really worked to their advantage. “The people of Cork knew that it was my first feature and really got behind me. Police, the local council, everybody did whatever they could to help, which made the shoot a dream.” Madsen couldn’t believe how the cast and crew were treated. “The fact that Mark chose to film in Cork using so many local actors, was a brave decision that has worked. It would have been impossible to generate the sense of reality on set had the film been shot in Hollywood,” says Madsen.

Adds Executive Producer Olann Kelleher: “All the places we filmed in the city and county were within a 20-block radius of each other, so it was very compact and very economical. Cork really embraced us filming there.”

The man charged with capturing Mahon’s vision was Director of Photography Alan Almond. “Mark always wanted to get Michael on the right side of the screen, which is an old Hollywood tradition about the goodie always being on the right and the baddie always being on the left. So that was an added complication in terms of choreography and camera position, and camera position in relation to where the sun was,” says Almond.

Lighting wise, the D.P. says that he worked with Mahon’s suggestion of using the darkness and light with Madsen’s character. He adds, “one of the key features of the lighting plan was to keep Michael’s character in the dark for much of the film. We would light an area and then have him come near the light rather than right in it.”

Coming from a musical background, Mahon knew the importance of getting a great score to enhance the drama. He met with Ilan Eshkeri and the two immediately hit it off. “I loved every step of the process but one of the highlights had to be recording the score in the world famous Studio One, Abbey Road. I’ll never forget walking down the corridor and looking at the posters of the amazing movie scores that were recorded there. In my heart, I knew something magical was about to happen,” says Mahon.

ABOUT THE CAST