Film

Good Vibrations

Name: Good Vibrations
Genre: Music, Drama
Released: 2012
Cast: Richard Dormer, Jodie Whittaker, Karl Johnson, Michael Colgan, Liam Cunningham

Biopic

Richard Dormer embodies Terri Hooley, the Belfast record-shop owner and label founder who became the unlikely godfather of Northern Irish punk. It's a portrait of stubborn idealism surviving through sectarian violence and economic collapse, funny and heartbreaking in equal measure. For anyone who loves music, small acts of defiance, or stories about people who refused to let their corner of the world stay grey.

TMDb rating

3.3

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you love music films about scrappy people who refuse to quit, with Belfast's punk scene, a sharp Northern Irish wit and a story that feels like it was lived rather than assembled.

Skip it if you want a tight, fast-moving plot; this is loose and episodic, following a stubborn optimist through setbacks, and its energy can feel more like a shrug than a drive.

What it asks of you: Settle in for just under two hours of easygoing, often funny storytelling that lingers on the rhythms of a particular place and time, with the Troubles hanging in the background.

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The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

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