The debate about political violence and nonviolence is a major theme in the discussion about the struggle for independence in Northern Ireland. This conflict is dramatized in the two films in context in the form of the Ireland Republic army (IRA) where two main characters are portrayed as a protagonist and an antagonist to bring out the theme in the films.
The Wind that Shakes the Barley is a film featured in the nineteenth century, by Ken Loach. Basing its storyline between the years 1920 and 1922, the film is founded on historical events. The film also employs a fictional cast of characters drawn from experiences of real-life participants. The rebellion involved between the Irish people and the British remains a painful event in the books of history, but that has not prevented it from undergoing intense public discussions. The film involves two characters who join an Irish army to fight for independence. The main themes that are drawn from the film mainly revolve around events related to independence. The film is set in a rural setting.
The next film is Michael Collins, by Neil Jordan. This film is more accurate in the way it examines its information compared to the Wind that Shakes the Barley (McLoone 226). It is a historical biopic. The film may in fact base its storyline on an accurate follow up of events, but it contains some historical alterations. Many found the film as a rich representative of the Irish way of life while others found it more of a Hollywood production. There are also arguments that the narration in this film conforms to the convention of classical Hollywood films. This is so because the classical Hollywood films present individuals who are psychologically defined, struggling to attain certain goals. While attaining these goals, the characters then get into conflict with other characters, or with external circumstances. The story then ends with a resolution of the problem, a decisive defeat or victory or a resolution of a problem. All these, fit in the Michael Collins film pretty well.
Analysing Thematic Opposition in the two Films: Violence/Non-Violence.
Michael Collins: Michael Collins film generally displays the importance of giving up violence while offering the effectiveness and legitimacy of violent methods to a certain extent to attain independence from the British invaders. In the film Michael Collins, there are two men, Eamon de Valera and Michael Collins, who are major participants in politics. At the start of the film, the two are on the same side, with similar interests of fighting for Irish freedom. The only disagreements coming up between them at this time seem to be related to their tactics. The first appearance of Michael Collins in uniform makes him easy to recognise as a soldier (Kilfeather, 215). Collins tries to stop British soldiers from hurting one of the ring leaders of the rising James Conolly after their capture which depicts him as a man who does not support violence. However, Eamon stops him telling him to wait for the next time which makes Eamon seem more like a strategist who is pro violence.
It is clear that while Collins is passionate and warm-hearted, he is also willing to resort to violence to defend his beliefs, even if it means doing it in a ruthless manner (Farquharson, Danine, and Sean 199). It is expected that Collins, as a man who has the interests of the Irish Republic at heart and a passionate man for that matter, would not advocate violence. However, as found earlier, at the time Eamon was jailed, Collins was the mastermind for all violence. He committed murders, daylight robberies and general mayhem all in the name of his beliefs.
At the same time, the film intends to capture the theme of nonviolence as an effective way to achieve their Irish independence. Before his death, Collins who is described as good at “bloody mayhem” commits to peace and negotiation only using violence as a last resort. From the film, Collins has ordered some deaths, including some assassinations (Kilfeather, 220). There is a conflict of themes where Collins has to commit so many murders to attain peace for the Irish Republic and later in his life he only resorts to violence after all other methods of resolution fail.
This film explores violent conflict between the rebels from Ireland and the British forces during the Easter Rising which happened in 1916 which led to the loss of the rebels to the British. The film debates on the civil wars in Ireland, casting light on the difficulties that led to the achievement of freedom. The film also connects the past and present relationship, leading to a re-examination of the Irish identity (Farquharson, Danine, and Sean 199).
The Wind That Shakes the Barley Like in the ‘Michael Collins’ film, ‘The Wind That Shakes the Barley’ film is based on the violent and nonviolent theme with one of the main actors resorting to violence as a means of justifying their cause while the other resorting to peace. The film is set in the 1920’s, a period where the British government did everything in its power to prevent Ireland from forming a republic. It portrays the violence perpetrated by the British who occupied Ireland. The British had sent an army to suppress the Republican movement set up by Irish leaders who opposed the British rule. The Republicans then staged an army that was going to counter the British soldiers (Street 146). Violence is seen as a catalyst for more conflict. When the British soldiers used violent tactics on the local people, they became more enraged and this made them become more resistant to British occupation.
It is a story about two brothers, Damien and Teddy who become conflicted on the best and most effective method of attaining Independence for Ireland. Damien is a doctor about to leave for London to start on his career and who is hesitant to join the Irish Republican Army. After witnessing the violence of British invaders first hand, he is motivated to join the army. A young man is killed by the British invaders for failing to give up his name while some conductors are beaten up at a train depot. The British army in this film is brought out as brutal and sadistic, who not only hate but also fear the people they have been assigned to suppress (Street 146). Damien seems to realize that the best way to counter the violence against his people is by joining the revolution much to the delight of his brother who is a leader of a band of freedom fighters. Teddy has been actively resisting ruthless squads sent from England to suppress the opposition in Ireland which shows indicates his stand on pro violence.
The film emphasizes on the use of violence to counter violence. The guerrilla soldiers shoot some British soldiers in a pub which leads to the capture and torture of members of Teddy’s band of fighters. Teddy retaliates by killing those that betrayed them to the British soldiers. Damien while in prison, is forced to commit several acts of violence. He is for instance forced to kill a friend of his (Michelin 107). Later in the film, Damien is executed before a firing squad, following the orders of his brother Teddy (Street 148). The fighters are transformed by the war and violence into a merciless band that will do anything that justifies their cause.
The film, has several incidents of intense violence. At the beginning of the film, Damien and his brother among other characters are busy playing a game when they are interrupted by a group of British soldiers. The soldiers are ruthless and especially do not take it kindly when an order they make is disobeyed. One of the boys on the same scene who dares to disobey them is beat to death by the soldiers, despite his mother’s pleas. Conclusively, this film majors on the themes of violence. The audience would agree that the amount of violence displayed on this film is disturbing, especially in the brutality of the British soldiers. The basis of the film also lies in the context that if there is no justice there is no peace. The rebels resort to violence to execute revenge attacks on the British troops to retaliate on violent acts on the local people.
After the signing of the peace treaty, Teddy joins the Free Staters as a soldier while Damien remains with the IRA and this sends the two brothers on opposing sides of a civil war. Teddy fails to embrace peace by sending troops to kill people from the opposing army but speaks of peace in Ireland. He even order the death of his brother by a firing squad.
Conclusion
Revolution, from the two films emerges as a powerful historical concept. Many analysts of these two films would argue that the aim of war is for the oppressed to fight for political freedom. One would also argue that one thing common between war and revolution is violence. The war in these two films led to the formation of new governments, leading to the beginning of a modern era. This would generally imply that without the violence that took place in these two films the fate of the Nothern Ireland state would probably have been a different one. The violent nature of the period of 1916-1924 in Ireland justifies that a new nation can be born out of a blood bath. This insinuates that the violence in the films was necessary.
The two films display a lot of similarity in the storyline. In both, the themes of violence and betrayal are clearly brought out. Both films also show the extreme bloodshed of the Irish period of war in the nineteenth century and the use of violence to fight the British violence is clearly brought out (McLoone, 228). The plight for peace using violence leads to the conflicting theme of violence and nonviolence.

Works Cited
McLoone, Martin. Irish Film: The Emergence of a Contemporary Cinema. London: British Film Institute, 2000. Print.
Eloin O’Malley. Contemporary Ireland. London, Plagrave Macmilan, 2011. Print Michelin, Tyre. Ireland. Harrow, Middlesex England: Michelin Tyre, 2007. Print.
Street, Sarah. British National Cinema. USA, Taylor & Francis, 2009. Print.
Kilfeather, Siobhán M. Dublin: A Cultural History. New York [u.a.: Oxford Univ. Press, 2005. Print.
Farquharson, Danine, and Sean Farrell. Shadows of the Gunmen: Violence and Culture in Modern Ireland. Cork: Cork University Press, 2008. Print.