Neil Jordan

Neil Jordan

Active - 1981 - 2022  |   Born - Feb 25, 1950 in Sligo, Ireland  |   Genres - Drama, Crime, Historical Film

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Biography by AllMovie

An acclaimed author of fiction, Neil Jordan entered films in 1981 as script consultant on John Boorman's King Arthur tale Excalibur. He made a documentary on the making of Boorman's film, and after scripting Traveler, wrote and directed his first film, the stylish drama Angel (aka Danny Boy) in 1982. Jordan attracted international attention with his horror tale The Company Of Wolves (1985) and his crime drama Mona Lisa (1986). He then came to the U.S., where he helmed two unimpressive comedies, High Spirits (1988) and We're No Angels (1989). Back in Ireland, Jordan strengthened his reputation with The Miracle (1991), a touching drama about Irish teens, and then scored a major hit with his striking drama of the IRA, The Crying Game (1992).In 1994, he returned to horror and Hollywood with his big-budget Anne Rice adaptation Interview with the Vampire (1994), but afterward, went back again to Ireland to make the highly acclaimed Michael Collins (1996), starring Liam Neeson, and The Butcher Boy, which earned Jordan a Silver Bear from the 1997 Berlin Film Festival.

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  • Played saxophone and banjo in a music group called Eilis.
  • Founded the Irish Writers' Cooperative in 1974, and has published several books, including the short-story collection Night in Tunisia (1976), and novels including The Past (1980), The Dreams of the Beast (1983), Shade (2005) and Mistaken (2011).
  • Made his directing debut in 1982 with the thriller Angel, which also marked his first collaboration with Irish actor Stephen Rea.
  • Biggest box-office success to date was the 1992 Anne Rice adaptation Interview with the Vampire, which grossed more than $200 million worldwide.
  • The London Film Critics Awards recognized him as Director of the Year in 1984 for The Company of Wolves, and British Director of the Year and British Screenwriter of the Year in 1992 for The Crying Game.