‘The Lost Children of Tuam’ is a restrained, emotionally affecting drama about Catherine Corless, the local historian whose research exposed the unacknowledged deaths and burials of children at a former Catholic mother-and-baby home in Tuam, Galway. The review argues that the film matters because it examines how difficult truths emerge through persistent local investigation before institutions can be pressed to acknowledge responsibility.

Monica Dolan is praised for a sensitive performance as Corless, an ordinary wife and mother who becomes an unexpected public figure while coping with depression. Directed by Frank Berry and written by Rebecca Lenkiewicz, the film avoids sensationalism and focuses on procedural grassroots work; it won Best Irish Film at the Galway Film Fleadh and is produced in part by Liam Neeson.