There’s a reason why location scouts often choose Ireland as a place for movie making. In addition to the tax incentives that film production companies receive, the sheer beauty of the country is a major factor in their decision-making.
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Here are 18 movies that put Ireland’s legendary scenery, culture, and heritage sites on a pedestal.
1. Achill Island – “The Banshees of Inisherin”
Love it or hate, the latest movie made on Irish soil is a wonderful advertisement for the island of Achill off the County Mayo coast, although scenes were also shot in Inishmore, the largest of the Aran Islands.
Achill, however, has been largely unknown to international visitors, until now.
The film, written and directed by Martin McDonagh, tells the story of two friends, Colm Doherty (Brendan Gleeson) and Pádraic Súilleabháin (Colin Farrell) who live on a windswept island during the Irish Civil War.
For reasons largely unknown, get into a feud, with one of them going to extreme lengths to keep the other from talking.
If you've been to Achill, you'll recognize the beautiful Keem Bay in the background where Colm's cottage is located, in addition to the Atlantic Drive, where the local pub is positioned as well as Purteen Harbour, where the movie's fictional village was recreated.
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How to Watch The Banshees of Inisherin: HBO Max, Apple TV, Amazon, and YouTube Movies.
2. The Giant’s Causeway, Mount Stewart, Divis and the Black Mountain, Northern Ireland – “Dracula Untold”
Numerous locations throughout Northern Ireland were used during the filming of “Dracula Untold,” an American dark fantasy action film that’s essentially a reboot of the Dracula film series.
Battle scenes for the movie were filmed in the area around Divis Mountain near Belfast, while the Italian Garden at Mount Stewart, a National Trust property, served as the grounds of Dracula’s castle.
The Giant’s Causeway doubled as the Transylvanian Mountain, with some CGI assistance.
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How to Watch Dracula Untold: YouTube , Google Play, iTunes, Apple TV+, Amazon Prime.
Read More: Discover Other Tourist Attractions in Northern Ireland
3. Skellig Michael & the Dingle Peninsula, Co. Kerry, Loop Head, Co. Clare, – Star Wars Episode VII “The Force Awakens”
The iconic Skellig Michael, the craggy island off the coast of Co. Kerry that was once the home of a monastic settlement, was the setting for several scenes of Star Wars “The Last Jedi.”
The island, which is located about seven miles from the Iveragh Peninsula, consists of 54 acres of rock, with its highest point known as the Spit (about 714 feet above sea level).
The monastery has an inner stone enclosure with two oratories, a church, seven cells, and the remains of water cisterns, as well as a cemetery, pilgrim stations, crosses, and a number of cross-slabs.
It was abandoned in the 12th century, but it continued to be a place of pilgrimage for years after that.
The spectacular cliffs at Loop Head in Co. Clare, which is a discovery point along the Wild Atlantic Way, Ireland’s premier tourist route, was also used as a location for the movie.
The Loop Head Heritage Trail is a popular activity for tourists who visit the area.
The filmmakers came to Sybil Head on the Dingle Peninsula to recreate the beehive huts that are a distinct part of Skellig Michael.
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How to Watch Star Wars Episode VII The Force Awakens: Disney+, YouTube, Google Play, Apple TV+, Amazon Prime.
Read More: County Clare, the Banner County
4. Malin Head, Co. Donegal, Mizen Head & Brow Head, Co. Cork – Star Wars Episode VIII “The Last Jedi”
The most northerly point in Ireland is Malin Head and it’s where the Star Wars production team decided to shoot scenes for Star Wars Episode VIII “The Last Jedi.”
The iconic spaceship Millennium Falcon was built in sections near Hell’s Hole, a dangerous ravine that is carved into the surrounding rocks.
Scenes for the movie were also filmed in County Cork at Mizen Head, the most southwesterly point in Ireland, and at Brow Head, its most southerly point.
How to Watch Star Wars Episode VIII The Last Jedi: Disney+ Hulu Premium, Sling TV Premium, YouTube, Google Play, Apple TV+
5. & 6. Curracloe Beach, Co. Wexford – “Brooklyn” and “Saving Private Ryan”
This popular beach in Co. Wexford was used in the making of two popular Hollywood movies, including “Brooklyn” and “Saving Private Ryan.”
Saoirse Ronan plays the lead character Eilis Lacey who emigrates to New York in 1951 to find employment.
On a return visit to Co. Wexford, she contemplates life in Brooklyn versus the one she left behind in Ireland.
Director Steven Spielberg chose the same beach to film scenes for his award-winning film, “Saving Private Ryan.”
The authentically made movie included 1,000 real weapons amongst the 500 fake ones and 40,000 gallons of fake blood. The opening scene of the movie was shot here.
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How to Watch Brooklyn: YouTube, iTunes, Google Play, Apple TV+, Amazon Prime.
How to Watch Saving Private Ryan: Pluto TV, YouTube, Google Play, Amazon Prime, Apple TV+
7. & 8. Dingle Peninsula – “Ryan’s Daughter” and “Far and Away”
The beautiful Coumeenole beach, situated along the popular Slea Head Drive, was one of the locations used in the making of the iconic 1969 movie “Ryan’s Daughter,” an epic romantic drama telling the story of an affair between a British officer and a married Irish woman during World War I.
You’ll find a commemoration stone in the car park overlooking the beach. It was erected in 1999 on the 30th anniversary of the film’s making.
“Far and Away,” the movie starring Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise, is about two young people seeking their fortune in 1890s America.
Only coastal scenes from Dingle were used in the movie.
Other places in Ireland that featured in this 1992 film include Killruddery House & Gardens in Bray, Co. Wicklow, and the streets around the Guinness Brewery, which were stand-ins for Boston at the end of the 19th century.
Of the two movies mentioned above, “Ryan’s Daughter” was solely responsible for putting Dingle and the surrounding Dingle Peninsula on the tourism map.
It remains one of Ireland’s most visited spots.
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How to Watch Ryan’s Daughter: Amazon Prime, iTunes, YouTube, Apple TV+, Google Play.
How to Watch Far and Away: YouTube, iTunes, Google Play, Apple TV+, Amazon Prime.
9. Leenane, Co. Mayo – “The Field”
Based on the great play of the same name written by the late John B. Keane, “The Field” is a powerful commentary on the importance of land ownership in Ireland, something that was taken away from Irish Catholics for generations.
It starred the legendary Richard Harris as Bull McCabe.
The movie was shot almost entirely around the village of Leenane in Connemara, along the Galway /Mayo border.
The pub scenes were filmed in Gaynor’s Pub, one of three pubs in the village.
How to Watch The Field: Netflix
10. Cong, Co. Mayo – “The Quiet Man”
Perhaps the most iconic of Irish movies is “The Quiet Man” filmed in Cong, Co. Mayo.
The movie was responsible for turning this rural part of Mayo into a popular tourist attraction and for putting the Dublin-born Maureen O’Hara firmly on the A-list of Hollywood actresses in the 1950s.
The Quiet Man Cottage Museum is an exact replica of the “White-O-Mornin’” cottage from the movie, including many of the furnishings used in it.
Cong’s legendary landscape includes Lough Corrib and the nearby Cong Abbey, Ashford Castle, Cong Wood, and Kylemore Abbey, about a 15-minute drive from the village.
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How to Watch The Quiet Man: Amazon Prime, YouTube, Google Play, iTunes.
Read More: North Mayo Looks Splendid in Newly Released Movie
11. & 12. The Cliffs of Moher, Co. Clare – “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” and “Into the West”
The Cliffs of Moher is Ireland’s most visited attraction.
Director David Yates filmed the sheer face of the Cliffs of Moher aboard a small ship in the Atlantic’s choppy seas for one of the scenes in “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.”
The movie “Into the West,” a film about the Irish traveling community and starring popular Irish actor Gabriel Byrne and his former wife, Ellen Barkin, was also shot at the cliffs, in addition to several scenes in Connemara in Co. Galway.
How to Watch Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: Hulu Premium, Peacock Premium, Sling TV, YouTube, iTunes, Google Play.
How to Watch Into the West: Vudu
13. Glenties, Co. Donegal – “Dancing at Lughnasa”
The Oscar-winning actress Meryl Streep headlined this delightful movie set in a beautiful area of Co. Donegal, which is known as The Glenties.
The story is set in 1936 during the Celtic harvest festival known as “Lughnasa.”
The film is based on Brian Friel’s play of the same name and is loosely based on his mother and aunts.
It centers around the lives of five sisters living together in rural Donegal, the oldest of which is played by Streep.
While all of them live amicably together, the arrival of their elderly brother, a priest, changes the dynamics of the household.
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How to Watch Dancing at Lughnasa: Amazon Prime, Apple TV
14. Wicklow Mountains – “PS I Love You”
This 2007 romantic drama, based on the book of the same name by Cecilia Ahern, was shot in New York but also in County Wicklow.
Locations for this fun movie include the beautiful Blessington Lakes and The Sally Gap located in the heart of the Wicklow Mountains National Park.
It’s where the characters Holly, played by Hillary Swanke, and Gerry (Gerard Butler) first meet.
How to Watch P.S. I Love You: Netflix, HBO Max, YouTube, iTunes, Google Play, Apple TV+
15. Inishmore, Aran Islands, Co. Galway – “Leap Year”
While most of this light-hearted movie was filmed on Inishmore, the largest of the Aran Islands, there are other popular tourist spots included too, such as the Rock of Dunamase in County Laoise, Glendalough in Co. Wicklow and Stephen’s Green in the heart of Dublin.
The 2020 movie tells the story of Anna Brady, who is frustrated that her boyfriend has not yet proposed to her.
She takes matters into her own hands by traveling to Ireland to ask him herself, based upon an old Irish tradition that a man cannot refuse a woman’s proposal on a leap day.
While there, she meets the surly innkeeper Declan and well, you’ll just have to watch the movie to find out what happens!
Perhaps the most memorable scene is the final proposal that takes place just outside the walls of the magnificent Dún Aonghasa on Inishmore, the prehistoric hill fort overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.
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How to Watch Leap Year: Amazon Prime, YouTube, Google Play, Apple TV+
16. Connemara – Black ‘47
Set in the worst years of the Famine in 1847, this powerful film is about an Irishman who returns home after fighting for the British only to use his military skills against them in revenge for his family’s death.
Most of the movie was made in Connemara, which, to the film’s location scouts, was indicative of the harsh landscape that many of the unfortunate Irish lived in at the time.
Other locations include Harristown House in Co. Kildare, which served as the Irish Constabulary Barracks.
The house, a spacious Georgian mansion, was built in the 18th century.
Some of its fascinating features include the 16th-century Chinese wallpaper in the mansion’s sitting room that depicts birds in vibrant colors.
The house is open to the public but only on specific dates. It normally serves as a language school.
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How to Watch Black ‘47: Netflix, YouTube, Google Play, Amazon Prime, Apple TV+
17. Kilmainham Jail, Trinity College, Four Courts, Dublin Castle – Michael Collins
The epic movie about Michael Collins, the revolutionary, soldier, and politician, was filmed primarily around Dublin.
Some of the heritage sites where it was filmed include Kilmainham Jail, where 14 men who had been involved in the 1916 Rising were executed by firing squad.
Other locations for the movie included Trinity College, where the Book of Kells is housed; the Four Courts, a fine example of Dublin’s Georgian architecture; and Dublin Castle, once the residence of the British monarch's representative in Ireland and today a popular tourist attraction.
Liam Neeson plays Collins, otherwise known as the “Big Fella.”
Collins signed a treaty with the British that established the Irish Free State, but which kept the north and south of Ireland separated.
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How to Watch Michael Collins: Google Play, Apple TV+, Amazon Prime, Vudu, iTunes.
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18. County Cork – The Wind that Shakes the Barley
Another film that is set during the Irish War of Independence, this one is shot mostly in several villages throughout County Cork.
The story revolves around two brothers, Damien O’Donovan, played by Cillian Murphy, and Teddy O’Donovan, played by Pádraic Delaney, who join the Irish Republican Army to fight for Ireland’s freedom.
The title of the movie is taken from a song of the same name, written in the 19th century that became a common theme among Irish Republican supporters, especially in song and poetry.
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How to Watch The Wind that Shakes the Barley: SlingTV, Amazon Prime, iTunes, Apple TV+
Read More: Bective Abbey Location for “Last Duel” Movie
Have you watched any of the 18 best Irish movies mentioned above? If so, let me know in the comments below.
