Michael Collins

Updated June 26, 2020 | Infoplease Staff

Michael Collins Archive Photsos

Michael Collins is a tough sell for Jordan, as the title character is not a well-known figure on these shores, and he's a controversial one in Ireland and England. But he got a boost when the film and Neeson in the title role won top honors at the Venice Film Festival. Collins (Neeson) leads the underground Irish Volunteers in their fight against English occupation of Ireland. He organizes the group shortly after the Easter Uprising of 1916 and commands the bloody fight between the Volunteers and English spies and troops stationed in Ireland. Jordan throws a love triangle into the mix, with Collins and his right-hand man Harry Boland (Quinn) both falling for Kitty Kiernan (Roberts). Collins's reputation as freedom fighter and hero suffer irreparably when he finally compromises with the British, leaving Northern Ireland under crown rule. He was shot at age 31, and some suspect former ally Eamon de Valera (Rickman) was in on plans to assassinate Collins.