Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

Saipan

Play trailer Saipan 2025 1h 31m Biography Drama History Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
91% Tomatometer 33 Reviews Popcornmeter 0 Ratings
On the eve of the 2002 FIFA World Cup, the Irish captain Roy Keane forfeits his place in the squad at the team's preparation base in Saipan, following a heated disagreement with the Irish manager Mick McCarthy.

Critics Reviews

View More
Mark Kermode Kermode and Mayo's Take (YouTube) Jan 26
There is a real sort of sense of melancholy underneath it. Go to Full Review Wendy Ide Observer (UK) Jan 26
A droll and gently entertaining blend of sports movie and soap opera. Go to Full Review Jonathan Romney Financial Times Jan 23
3/5
...Saipan may not always be transparent to non-initiates, but it astutely balances the episode’s resonance — rooting it in Irish national self-confidence at that period — with droll touches of humdrum domesticity. Go to Full Review Andrew Murray The Upcoming 1d
3/5
Filmmakers Glenn Leyburn and Lisa Barros D’Sa retell this sporting controversy in Saipan, a lean drama that taps into themes of Ireland’s national identity. Go to Full Review Dov Kornits FILMINK (Australia) 1d
15/20
Your appreciation of Saipan will be vastly improved if you know who Roy Keane is, if you followed the Premier League and specifically Manchester United in the ‘90s, and/or you’re Irish. Go to Full Review Tom Shone Sunday Times (UK) 6d
3/5
The film is decent enough but lacks a compelling raison d’être. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Cast & Crew

View All

Lisa Barros D'Sa

Director

Glenn Leyburn

Director

Steve Coogan

Actor

Eanna Hardwicke

Actor

Aoife Hinds

Actor

Harriet Cains

Actor
View All

Saipan

View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis On the eve of the 2002 FIFA World Cup, the Irish captain Roy Keane forfeits his place in the squad at the team's preparation base in Saipan, following a heated disagreement with the Irish manager Mick McCarthy.
Director
Lisa Barros D'Sa, Glenn Leyburn
Producer
Trevor Birney, Oliver Butler, Macdara Kelleher, John Keville
Screenwriter
Paul Fraser
Production Co
Wild Atlantic Pictures, Finepoint Films
Genre
Biography, Drama, History
Original Language
English
Runtime
1h 31m