This film screened on Saturday 14th January 2017.

Meetings with Ivor.

The First Fortnight screenings are sold out but the film will open at the IFI from the 10th of February. Tickets here. 

Ivor Browne has been a central figure in Irish mental health for many decades. Some people wish he wasn’t. Yet many people owe their lives to him. The Wonder Eye, a thought-proving new film by Alan Gilsenan, captures the essence of an extraordinary human being. Browne somehow managed to be part of the establishment while still being one of its greatest critics. His pioneering and often controversial lifelong work on behalf of the many who cannot speak for themselves is notable.

In this quirky and challenging cinematic portrait we meet him, now in his late-eighties, and witness not only his energy, good humour, music-making and true compassion but also his deeply informed, startlingly innovative thought. His unique attributes continue to find vital expression and offer real hope in an increasingly bewildering world. With contributions from Tommy Tiernan, Tom Murphy, Mary Coughlan, Sebastian Barry, Nell McCafferty and others, The Wonder Eye is a film as radical as the man himself.

The screening on Saturday January 14th will be followed by a Q&A with Alan Gilsenan and Ivor Browne.

Screening as part of First Fortnight.