Kenneth Branagh’s masterpiece, Belfast, is hoarding all the nominations at the Oscars. The movie scored nominations in (whopping!) seven categories including Best Picture and Best Director. Needless to say, the movie is likely to sweep all the awards this year. The events that transpired in 1970s Northern Ireland and Kenneth’s childhood formed the inspiration for the movie. 

What is Belfast all about?

In Belfast, we are introduced to a 9-year-old boy, Buddy, played by the newcomer Jude Hill, in this black and white film. Buddy lives with his Ma (Caitriona Balfe) and Pa (Jamie Dornan), his brother Will and his grandparents in 1960s Belfast during the great unrest, The Troubles, that was persisting throughout the country.

It was a time when the country was witnessing violent conflict between the Irish Catholics and the Irish Protestants. The decade-long conflict was threatening the family’s lives. Jude’s parents were forced to contemplate whether to leave the country they know as home or stay during those dark times. 

Although the drama is set during a tumultuous time, it offers a sense of hope to its viewers. The brothers come of age, find love, while Buddy finds an escape in films. 

“The script was so emotional, and it was really evocative,” says Catriona.

She added, “Even though it’s very much Ken’s story, I was sobbing by the end of it as somebody who’s left Ireland, as somebody who grew up in a very big family, and I’m now away from them.”

The semi-autobiographical drama premiered in Telluride before releasing in theaters in November 2021. The movie has gained an 87% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. 

Is Belfast available on Netflix? 

The prestige cinema is currently not on Netflix, but it is still running in the theaters. You can catch the movie with a live audience, or buy the movie on YouTube, Apple TV, Amazon Prime Video, VUDU, Redbox, and Xfinity. The DVD version won’t be released until December this year. 

You can also rent the movie on AMC on-demand or Alamo on demand. 

Since Focus Features/ Universal Films is distributing the movies, it is likely to be available on streaming platforms very soon. Universal usually releases its movies on digital platforms a few months after its official release. Hence, fans can be hopeful that it might drop on Netflix later this year.