10 Things Lindsay Lohan’s Netflix Rom-Com Irish Wish Gets Hilariously Wrong About Ireland

Summary

• Romance, humor, and enjoyable story make Irish Wish a fun watch despite inaccurate Irish culture representation.
• Glaring errors like wrong Guinness glasses and unrealistic dating app portrayals are hard to overlook.
• Lohan shines in a light-hearted rom-com, but the film’s flawed storytelling and lack of authenticity disappoint.

The latest Lindsay Lohan Netflix rom-com Irish Wish presented a questionable representation of Ireland and was chock-full of hilarious errors about the Irish countryside, culture, and cuisine. While Irish Wish, like Lohan’s previous holiday rom-com Falling for Christmas, may have felt like harmless, mindless, escapism, it acted as another all too common simplification of the Irish way of life that made it look like Irish people were a few hundred years behind the rest of the world. As Maddie found love at the Cliffs of Moher, any Irish viewer could not help but notice all the glaring errors.

Irish Wish never claimed to be a documentary and the important thing in a rom-com was that its story was enjoyable, its romance compelling, and its humor was heartwarming. Sadly, Lohan’s second Netflix rom-com has been called a silly, flawed watch full of clichés that repeated the same story beats as better rom-coms. Despite these criticisms, it’s great to see Lohan back in the type of light-hearted movie that she does so well, and, while it may not be a perfect film, viewers can tune in to witness all the things Irish Wish got hilariously wrong about Ireland.

10 It’s Not So Calm On The Cliffs Of Moher

Maddie and James should have been surrounded by tourists

In truth, Maddie and James would have been surrounded by countless other American tourists taking pictures.

Before Maddie’s wish magically came true, she made a connection with an Englishman named James and the two drove up the Cliffs of Moher on what must have been the quietest day of the year, as there were no other tourists around. In truth, Maddie and James would have been surrounded by countless other American tourists taking pictures, Maddie’s hair would be wildly blowing in the wind, and they would have had serious trouble finding a place to park their car. Despite James’ statement that he was showing her the “authentic Ireland”, this tourist site was anything but.

9 They’re Drinking Guinness From The Wrong Glasses

Guinness glasses lacked a signature design

To avoid product placement, the drink of choice in Irish Wish was simply stout, but any Irish person watching knew that most people in these old rural pubs would have been drinking Guinness. However, the most shocking mistake was the glasses that they were being served in were the wrong shape and lacked the tulip design needed for the perfect pint of Guinness. Irish people take drinking Guinness very seriously and there was an exact science to this choice of glass, which helped the drink settle just right and gave it an iconic aesthetic that’s missing from Irish Wish.

8 Boxty And Caviar Is Not A Typical Irish Breakfast

Boxty should have been served with a classic Irish breakfast

Maddie should have switched out her caviar for some bacon, beans, eggs, and sausage.

After Maddie’s wish came true in Irish Wish, she found herself quite confused at the breakfast table sitting next to Paul, her surprise husband-to-be, and was made to look like a fool when she did not know what the Irish pancake known as boxty was. Although, it appeared the filmmakers were just as confused as Maddie because they served the potato-based breakfast item with caviar. In truth, boxty would be served with a more classic Irish breakfast and Maddie should have switched out her caviar for some bacon, beans, eggs, and sausage.

7 Saint Brigid Does Not Grant Wishes

The Irish national saint was not known for her mischievous side

Perhaps the most glaring error about Irish culture and beliefs seen in Irish Wish was its central premise about Saint Brigid being a mischievous figure who granted wishes to oblivious American tourists. Saint Brigid of Kildare, along with Saint Patrick, was one of Ireland’s national saints whose feast occurred on the first of February, an important religious holiday in Ireland. Granting wishes was never something Brigid was associated with and instead, Irish people prayed to her to bless their household and its inhabitants.

6 Irish Tinder Is A Disaster

Emma would have quickly run out of dating options in rural Ireland

After Maddie discovered that she had switched places with her close friend Emma and now she was marrying Paul instead, Emma was revealed to be single once again and swiping on dating apps where she said, “there are some seriously hot men in this town.” Sadly, all Irish people watching knew Emma’s swiping days would be short-lived as there’s a serious lack of dating options in small-town Ireland, and after a few short hours of swiping Emma would be forced to extend her distance. While nature may be abundant in the Irish countryside, viable relationship options are not.

5 There Would Be No Free Books For Customers

Free books for the week’s one-hundredth customer would be a bad business practice

After meeting Maddie on the bus, the nature photographer James went to a local bookstore to pick up a wildlife book and was told that as the 100th customer, he won a promotional copy of Paul Kennedy’s novel Two Irish Hearts. While this was an important development so that James could discover Maddie was the real author, in truth, Irish bookstores have been closing at a rapid rate and most could not afford to give a free book to every 100 customers. In most stores around Ireland, if James wanted to read the latest bestseller, he’d have to buy it.

4 Paul Kennedy Would Be Considered A Hack

The Irish public would not care for Two Irish Hearts

Paul Kennedy’s reputation as “one of the best-selling authors in the UK” was questionable at best considering how awful his writing appeared to be. While it’s revealed that Maddie’s influence as his book editor made his latest novel much better, as an American who had never previously set foot in Ireland, her contributions would have surely lacked authenticity. In reality, all evidence pointed to Paul Kennedy not being a respected author in Ireland or the UK, and if he was able to get published at all his books would have stayed firmly in the bargain bin.

3 There’s More Than One Road In Ireland

The travel situation in Ireland is presented as extremely basic

After James and Maddie reached a giant tree blocking the road she learned that it was “the only road out” and that they’d be forced to spend the night in a “lovely little pub.” This played into the myth seen throughout Irish Wish that there was only one road in Ireland, which was previously shown when the bus from the airport had no issue dropping Maddie off directly outside the Kennedy’s house, as it appeared all cars just drove in one straight line in Ireland. In truth, Ireland had plenty of side roads that would have surely brought Maddie home.

2 The Accents Are Wrong And The Dialogue Is All Over The Place

Lots of non-Irish actors were doing bad accents

The biggest issue with almost every film set in Ireland has always been the accents and the dialogue, which any Irish person can spot as wrong a thousand miles away, and Irish Wish was a particularly bad example. Paul Kennedy was played by Welsh actor Alexander Vlahos, and much of the supposedly Irish cast was made up of Americans, with Lindsay Lohan’s brother Dakota even playing Paul’s groomsman Finn. Irish Wish was full of inaccurate Irish sayings that made it look like Ireland was still stuck in the olden days as opposed to being a fully developed, 21st-century, nation.

1 Maddie’s Trip Is No James Joyce Novel

The Cliffs of Moher would not remind anyone of a James Joyce novel

One quote in Irish Wish that truly encapsulated how much the film got wrong about Ireland was when Maddie told James on the Cliffs of Moher: “I feel like I’m in a James Joyce novel.” While it’s true James Joyce was one of Ireland’s greatest writers, it begged the question of what novel Maddie felt like she was in, as none of Joyce’s three novels dealt with the Irish countryside, and Joyce consistently explored the paralysis of urban life in his work. Maddie claimed Joyce was her favorite writer, which was surprising, as she clearly never read his work.