Finnegan’s Foursome: Charming cynicism keeps schmaltzy family golfing dramedy above par
Monday, 20 July 2026
REVIEW: For four decades, Jack “The Professor” Finnegan (Ian McElhinney) has been unbeatable.
Sure, his success on the pro-tour has been enviable, but it’s his dominance of the annual intra-family Finnegan Cup that really riles his youngest son Freddy (Ed Burns). Forget having the “golf gods” on his side, Freddy is convinced his Pa has made a “deal with the devil”.
Really, though, his main gripe, and the reason he tells his sibling Teddy (Brian d'Arcy James) that he wants to give it a miss this year, is that their father is “the most competitive pain in the ass who will stop at nothing to win”. It takes both Teddy and Freddy’s son Frankie (Brian Muller) to eventually persuade him that it’s the rituals (a customary cocktail here, a mashie niblick speech there) and opportunity to bond that are main reasons they should all attend.
This edition, though, is blighted by tragedy, as Frankie’s impressive hole-in-one is overshadowed by Jack collapsing and dying on the course.
When they later gather for the funeral, that’s when Jack’s oldest friend and caddie Declan (Stuart Graham) reveals that Jack left specific instructions about the scattering of his ashes in his native Ireland, written on a pub napkin. As well as the family farm and the local lighthouse where he proposed to his late wife, there are also two golf courses.
With Teddy’s daughter Marie (Erica Hernandez) drafted in to make up a foursome, Teddy, Freddy and Frankie decide to make their Emerald Isle pilgrimage double up as the latest round of the Finnegan Cup – 54 holes of strokeplay, triple-bogey max and various golfing etiquette rules that are bound to be broken.
After seemingly disappearing from Hollywood, late ‘90s favourite multi-hyphenate Burns (She’s the One, The Brothers McMullen) is back with his third movie (after and The Family McMullen) in three years.
If you’ve seen any of those above titles then you know what to expect from Finnegan’s Foursome (now available to rent from Neon, Apple TV and Prime Video) - familial tensions, witty one-liners and sappy sentiment. Unsurprisingly, given the setting, this one comes with plenty of American-Irish cliches, tropes and craic.
Those who enjoy on-course banter and attempts to undermine opponents will lap up the antics of our quartet (even if their club choices remain questionable), while Burns as a writer finds a nice balance between cynicism and schmaltz, even if Burns the director doesn’t quite get his pacing right (some scenes really do drag).
Still it’s far from a good walk – or evening’s viewing – spoiled.
Finnegan’s Foursome (13+) is now available to rent from Neon, Prime Video and Apple TV.