Best Irish movie of 2026 so far is available to watch from this weekend

Based on true events, this tense thriller puts a unique twist on a classic sub-genre.

The movie follows two bank workers, manager Richard Murray (Eddie Marsan) and security guard Barry McKenna (Saipan’s Éanna Hardwicke), in Belfast in 2004.

The pair have little in common. In fact, they don't seem to like each other very much. Richard thinks Barry is a slacker. Barry thinks Richard is domineering and petty. There's also unresolved history between the pair's families.

That said, the manager and security guard are forced together when a dangerous gang holds Richard's wife (Eva Birthistle) and Barry's mother (Andrea Irvine) hostage in a tiger kidnapping scheme.

Forced to comply with the gang to ensure no harm comes to their families, Barry and Richard are tasked with stealing millions from their place of work.

Our favourite Irish film to get a cinema release in 2026 so far, the thriller is a fictionalised retelling of 2004’s Northern Bank robbery. You can read about the real-life heist, which has been described as “one of the most notorious crimes in British and Irish history”, right here.

We’d advise, though, knowing as little as possible about the true life events before watching the Irish movie, as that would undercut the palpable levels of suspense director Colin McIvor and his co-writer Aisling Corristine build.

No Ordinary Heist mines maximum tension from its premise. There's the uneasy alliance between Barry and Richard, with one suspecting the other of being an inside man.

On top of this, there are several scenes of the pair straining to keep a cool head in front of their colleagues, including the bank's devoted head of security (Michelle Fairley). This is all the while being threatened by the criminals through phone calls and texts.

Amidst these trials and tribulations, the drama cuts to moments of Barry's mam and Richard's wife with their captors, who don't seem like they would think twice about inflicting violence.

Some off-kilter editing/time-jumps and a few ambiguous plot details throughout serve to further enhance the feeling of uncertainty as to how the proceedings will unfold.

Plus, this all transpires during the week before Christmas and amidst rumours of layoffs at the bank, details which make what Barry and Richard have to go through feel doubly cruel.

Marsan is typically great, nailing a Belfast brogue while convincing as a mild-mannered, emotionally repressed workaholic whose worst nightmare has become a reality.

That said, recent IFTA-winner Hardwicke is the real standout. He captures a live-wire mix of youthful bravado, inner darkness and fidgety vulnerability that has you rooting for Barry, even as you question his actions.

Eva Birthistle in No Ordinary Heist

No Ordinary Heist isn't perfect. Yes, the thriller is anxiety-inducing as it plays out. Yet, a fair bit of the narrative obfuscation we noted above ultimately winds up feeling like a red herring to distract from how straightforward the story actually is, which is a tad frustrating.

Even so, by focusing on two ordinary people strong-armed into committing a robbery, No Ordinary Heist puts a new twist on a classic sub-genre. We'd recommend this Irish thriller for fans of American Animals, The Killing, The Taking of Pelham One Two Three, and The Town.

No Ordinary Heist is in cinemas from Friday, 27 March. It will come to Sky Cinema later in 2026.